Rue de l'Université, Paris
The Rue de l'Université is a street located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, France. Location. The 2,785 m long street (the tenth longest in the French capital, see ) of variable width, between 10.5 m and 15 m, is flat and parallel to the Seine from which it is only a few hundred metres away. It begins, in the east, at the crossroads with the and goes west-northwest, crosses the boulevard Saint-Germain and then resumes due west at the level of the Palais Bourbon, crosses the Esplanade des Invalides, the then the and the  ; it then turns a little to the south, crosses the before ending in a dead end on the on the northeast square of the Eiffel tower. Origin of the name. In the 12th century, the acquired a territory located along the Seine, west of the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés to which it previously belonged. This territory was called "" (first mentioned in 960): either because students (formerly called "clerics") came to relax during their rest periods, or because the "watch" or review of the subjects of the king of the Basoche took place there every year (this association was  only recognized in 1303). Le Pré-aux-Clercs was also the scene of many duels. In 1639, the University sold the Pré-aux-Clercs and it was subdivided into a new district of Paris whose main street took the name "rue de l'Université". Later, with the successive extensions of the city, this street was extended to the Champ-de-Mars, crossing the Esplanade des Invalides. The street ran along an arm of the Seine until the connection of the former île des Cygnes at the end of the 18th century. History. Until 1838, the rue de l'Université was composed of  two distinct parts: A prefectoral decree of 31 August 1838 prescribes the reunion of these two parties under the same name of "rue de l'Université".