Location of the Bastille

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The Bastille of French Revolutionary fame was originally located at the western edge of what is now the place de la Bastille. It was demolished shortly after the beginning of the revolution, but today the outline of the original structure can be seen thanks to colored paving stones in the sidewalk and street at the site where it once stood. In the photo above, I've marked these stones in yellow, because they are hard to see in the original photo at this size. In the foreground you can see the outline of one of the towers.

You are looking roughly northwest in this picture. Most of the site of the Bastille is occupied by several restaurants today, in the background of this photo. The street in the foreground with the marked paving stones is the boulevard Henri IV, and existed at the time of the Bastille; likewise, the street behind these restaurants, the rue Saint-Antoine (not visible here), also was present at the time of the Bastille. Off to the right (and mostly outside the frame of this photo) is the place de la Bastille itself.

In 1899, some of the foundation stones that had escaped demolition were discovered on this site, and they were transferred to a small park about 500 metres away. I have a photograph of these remaining stones, if you would like to see those.

Photographed on July 21, 2000.