page_title: Hôtel de Ville, Paris
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Hôtel de Ville, Paris / History / History
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Gravure de Theodor Josef Hubert Hoffbauer représentant l'Hôtel de Ville de Paris en 1583. English: Engraving by Theodor Josef Hubert Hoffbauer (1839-1922), showing the Hôtel de Ville de Paris in 1583.
context_page_description: The Hôtel de Ville in Paris, France, is the building housing the city's local administration, standing on the place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville in the 4th arrondissement. The south wing was originally constructed by François I beginning in 1535 until 1551. The north wing was built by Henry IV and Louis XIII between 1605 and 1628.It was burned by the Paris Commune, along with all the city archives that it contained, during the Commune's final days in May 1871. The outside was rebuilt following the original design, but larger, between 1874 and 1882, while the inside was considerably modified. It has been the headquarters of the municipality of Paris since 1357. It serves multiple functions, housing the local administration, the Mayor of Paris, and also serves as a venue for large receptions.
context_section_description: In July 1357, Étienne Marcel, provost of the merchants (i.e. mayor) of Paris, bought the so-called maison aux piliers ("House of Pillars") in the name of the municipality on the gently sloping shingle beach which served as a river port for unloading wheat and wood and later merged into a square, the Place de Grève ("Strand Square"), a place where Parisians often gathered, particularly for public executions. Ever since 1357, the City of Paris's administration has been located on the same location where the Hôtel de Ville stands today. Before 1357, the city administration was located in the so-called parloir aux bourgeois ("Parlour of Burgesses") near the Châtelet.
  In 1533, King Francis I decided to endow the city with a city hall which would be worthy of Paris, then the largest city of Europe and Christendom. He appointed two architects: Italian Dominique de Cortone, nicknamed Boccador because of his red beard, and Frenchman Pierre Chambiges. The House of Pillars was torn down and Boccador, steeped in the spirit of the Renaissance, drew up the plans of a building which was at the same time tall, spacious, full of light and refined. Building work was not finished until 1628 during the reign of Louis XIII.
  During the next two centuries, no changes were made to the edifice which was the stage for several famous events during the French Revolution. On 27 July 1794, Maximilien Robespierre attempted to commit suicide following a coup and was arrested along with his followers. On 14 July 1789, the last provost of the merchants Jacques de Flesselles was murdered by an angry crowd. In 1835, on the initiative of Rambuteau, préfet of the Seine département, two wings were added to the main building and were linked to the facade by a gallery, to provide more space for the expanded city government. The architects were Étienne-Hippolyte Godde and Jean-Baptiste Lesueur.
caption: Engraving by Theodor Josef Hubert Hoffbauer (1885) showing how he envisioned the Hotel de Ville in 1583
exif: {}