Discover Paris on exceptional guided tours

The Champs de Mars is the largest green space in Paris.

It takes its name from an area used for military manoeuvres and, according to legend, it was here in 52 BC that the Parisiis, a Gallic people, were defeated by the Romans. This is also where the Universal Exhibitions used to be held.

The Pont Alexandre III was built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900 and symbolizes Franco-Russian friendship. The first stone was laid by the last Tsar of Russia Nicolas II. The bridge is named after his father Tsar Alexander III. The architect is called Joseph Cassien-Bernard. The Chateau-Landon stone which was used to build the Sacré Coeur and the Arc de Triomphe was notably used for the construction of the Bridge.

The Petit Palais was built for the Universal Exhibition of 1900 by the architect Charles Girault. Today it is the Museum of Fine Arts of the city of Paris. There are paintings by the greatest painters Renoir, Courbet, Rembrandt, Monet etc... Did you know? The Saigon Opera House was built the same year in a very similar style.

The first houses on rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré were burned down by the Communards in 1871, along with part of rue Royale.

Did you know?

Empress Eugénie, no doubt superstitious, had the number 13 in the rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré removed, and it was never reinstated.