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51-628: It was on this spot that the first bridge of Paris, called the Grand-Pont , crossed the Seine from antiquity. A bridge has existed there since at least the pre-Roman tribal era, to be rebuilt again and again, sometimes of wood, sometimes of stone. In 886, during the siege of Paris and the Norman attacks, the Roman stone structure was destroyed and replaced by a different bridge, possibly a plank bridge, named

102-954: A decision was made to rebuild the bridge, this time in metal. The new work was directed by Jean Résal , who had also worked on the Pont Mirabeau and Pont Alexandre III ; it was inaugurated in 1919 by Raymond Poincaré , President of the French Republic. The structure has remained the same since. Beneath one of the arches, there is a distich in Latin from Italian poet Jacopo Sannazaro , best known for his master-work Arcadia , which depicted an idyllic land. The inscription reads: Jucundus geminum posuit tibi, Sequana, pontem: Hunc tu jure potes dicere pontificem This quote translates as "Joconde (Giacondo) put up this twin bridge here for you, Sequana ; you are able to speak of this priest with authority" or "in this you can swear that he

153-402: A fierce struggle, Louis took the castle and burned it to the ground, taking Hugh prisoner. Rashly, Louis released Hugh, and while Louis was engaged in war with Henry I of England and Theobald, Hugh raised another band of brigands and began ravaging the country again. When Louis returned his attention to Hugh, he found Le Puiset rebuilt and Hugh receiving aid from Theobald. Hugh held out against

204-402: A new stone structure was completed atop the existing stone foundation, although this reincarnation was only composed of five arches. The new bridge was subsequently the cause of not fewer than thirty-five water traffic accidents between 1891 and 1910 and was given the unofficial name the pont du Diable (Devil's Bridge). Thus, in order to facilitate the passage of boats and the flow of the Seine,

255-403: A succession crisis. Soon a number of relatives raised claims, including William of Ypres , popularly thought to be complicit in the murder; Thierry of Alsace ; and Arnold of Denmark, nephew of Charles who seized Saint-Omer ; Baldwin, Count of Hainault , who seized Oudenarde , and Godfrey I, Count of Louvain and Duke of Brabant . Louis then moved decisively to secure Flanders, apprehending

306-587: Is situated on the right bank of the River Seine . It contains the Renaissance -era Paris City Hall , rebuilt between 1874 and 1882. It also contains the Renaissance square of Place des Vosges , the overtly modern Pompidou Centre , and the lively southern part of the medieval district of Le Marais , which today is known for being the gay district of Paris. (The quieter northern part of Le Marais

357-454: Is within the 3rd arrondissement ). The eastern part of the Île de la Cité (including Notre-Dame de Paris ) and all of the Île Saint-Louis are also included within the 4th arrondissement. The 4th arrondissement is known for its little streets, cafés, and shops but is often regarded by Parisians as expensive and congested. It has old buildings and a mix of many cultures. With a land area of 1.601 km (0.618 sq mi; 396 acres),

408-623: The Duchy of Normandy and quickly took possession of the castle at Gisors , a fortress of strategic importance on the right bank of the Epte , commanding the road between Rouen and Paris. This violated an earlier agreement between Henry and the French King that Gisors should remain in the hands of a neutral castellan , or else be demolished. This move threatened the Capetian domain and Louis

459-623: The Low Countries and an invasion of Northern France would enable him to strengthen his ambitions in Flanders, as well as support his father-in-law. Thus in 1124, Henry V assembled an army to march on Rheims . It never arrived. In testament to how far Louis had risen as national protector, all of France rose to his appeal against the threat. Henry V was unwilling to see the French barons united behind their King, who now identified himself as

510-633: The Pont des Planches de Milbray (Milbray plank bridge), although the exact timing, placement, and existence of this particular plank bridge is contested. Two wooden bridges (at the place of the Grand Pont and Petit Pont) are said to have been burned in 1111. These bridges were replaced by Louis the Fat ( Louis VI ) with the two famous stone bridges as depicted in the Life of Saint Denis , which were then destroyed in

561-516: The peace included Henry's heir, William Adelin , doing homage to Louis for Normandy, a return of all territories captured by both kings with the painful exception of Gisors itself, which Louis was forced to concede to Henry. On 2 March 1127, the count of Flanders , Charles the Good , was assassinated in St. Donatian's Cathedral at Bruges . It was a scandal in itself but made worse because it precipitated

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612-430: The 4th arrondissement is the third smallest arrondissement in the city. It is bordered to the west by the 1st arrondissement , to the north by the 3rd , to the east by the 11th and 12th , and to the south by the Seine and the 5th . The peak of population of the 4th arrondissement occurred before 1861, though the arrondissement was defined in its current shape only since the re-organization of Paris in 1860. In 1999,

663-518: The Counts of Anjou , Brittany, and Nevers . Louis seized the fortress of Pont-du-Chateau on the Allier , then attacked Clermont, which William was forced to abandon. Aimeri was restored. Four years later William rebelled again and Louis, though his increasing weight made campaigning difficult, marched again. He burned Montferrand and seized Clermont a second time, captured William, and brought him before

714-619: The English crown, reneging on the oath he had sworn to Henry I to support Matilda. Stephen was thus in no position to bring the combined Anglo-Norman might against the French crown. Louis had also made great strides in exercising his royal authority over his barons, and even Theobald II had finally rallied to the Capetian cause. Finally, on 9 April 1137, a dying William X, Duke of Aquitaine appointed Louis VI guardian of his fifteen-year-old daughter and heiress, Eleanor of Aquitaine . Eleanor

765-708: The Fat (French: le Gros ) or the Fighter (French: le Batailleur ), was King of the Franks from 1108 to 1137. Like his father Philip I , Louis made a lasting contribution to centralizing the institutions of royal power. He spent much of his twenty-nine-year reign fighting either the " robber barons " who plagued the Ile de France or Henry I of England for his continental possession of Normandy . Nonetheless, Louis VI managed to reinforce his power considerably, often resorting to force to bring lawless knights to justice, and

816-625: The Green, Archbishop of Rheims , sent envoys to challenge the validity of the coronation and anointing, but to no avail. When Louis ascended the throne, the Kingdom of France was a collection of feudal principalities. Beyond the Isle de France the French kings had limited authority over the great duke and counts of the realm but slowly Louis began to change this and assert Capetian power. This process would take two centuries to complete but began in

867-623: The King until Theobald abandoned him. Once again Louis razed Le Puiset and Hugh, who had sworn never to return to his brigandage, rebuilt the castle and resumed terrorizing his neighbours. At the third attempt, Louis finally defeated Hugh and stripped him of his possessions for the last time. Hugh later died on an expiatory pilgrimage to the Holy Land . These were just some of the recalcitrant nobles Louis contended with. There were many more, and Louis

918-482: The Rue des Rosiers being at the heart of its community. There are a handful of kosher restaurants, and Jewish institutions. Since the 1990s, gay culture has influenced the arrondissement, with new residents opening a number of bars and cafés in the area by the town hall. Lycée Charlemagne is located in the arrondissement, as well as Haredi Jewish institutions Yad Mordekhai. Metro stations within, partially or fully,

969-468: The additional effort meant he could not defeat the English monarch as well or force him to abandon Gisors, and in March 1113 Louis was forced to sign a treaty recognizing Henry I as suzerain of Brittany and Maine. Peace of sorts lasted three years until April 1116 when hostilities renewed in the French and Norman Vexins , with each king making gains from his rival. By 1119, buoyed by several successes and

1020-467: The bridge were the first to be given numbers. In 1660 the bridge was refurbished to honour the arrival in Paris of the daughter of the king Philip IV of Spain , Maria Theresa of Spain who became queen of France by marrying Louis XIV . Between 1746 and 1788 the houses along the bridge were demolished for sanitary purposes and because of the danger the structures caused to the bridge's stability. In 1853,

1071-466: The building of the Petit Pont . The construction was completed in 1507, still overhung with sixty stone and brick buildings all built to one tall gabled design, and would become a spot of frequent commerce and trading: here was located the tiny boutique of the marchand-mercier Edme-François Gersaint , a leading Parisian art dealer, whose shop-sign was painted by Antoine Watteau . The houses upon

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1122-624: The capture (through treachery) of Les Andelys , Louis felt ready for a final encounter to end the war. In the fierce Battle of Bremule , in August 1119, Louis's troops broke and were routed, abandoning the royal banner and sweeping the King along with them in retreat to Les Andelys. A counterattack through Évreux to seize Breteuil failed, and Louis, his health failing, looked for peace. He appealed to Pope Calixtus II , who agreed to help and met with Henry at Gisors in November 1120. The terms of

1173-467: The court at Orléans to answer for his crimes. Some of the outlaws became notorious for their cruelty, the most notable being Thomas, Lord of Coucy , who was reputed to indulge in torture of his victims, including hanging men by their testicles, cutting out eyes, and chopping off feet. Guibert of Nogent noted of him, "No one can imagine the number of those who perished in his dungeons, from starvation, from torture, from filth." Another notable brigand

1224-412: The daughter of his father's seneschal , in 1104, but repudiated her three years later. They had no children. On 3 August 1115 Louis married Adelaide of Maurienne , daughter of Humbert II of Savoy and of Gisela of Burgundy , and niece of Pope Callixtus II . They had eight children. Adelaide was one of the most politically active of all France's medieval queens. Her name appears on 45 royal charters from

1275-514: The flood of 1296 and the wooden bridge which then replaced the stone Grand Pont was destroyed by the floods of 1406. On 31 May 1412 Charles VI of France ordered the construction of the first version of the bridge to be named "Notre-Dame". This structure was composed of solid wood and connected the Île de la Cité to the rue Saint-Martin. The bridge took seven years to build and had sixty houses atop it, thirty on each side. The houses were noted by Robert Gauguin as being "remarkable for their height, and

1326-496: The king of the English, William Rufus , when he attacked Louis' inherited kingdom." In 1098, Louis was knighted by Guy I of Ponthieu . On Christmas Day 1100 he attended the royal court of Henry I of England in London, where according to Symeon of Durham , Louis appeared as "king elect of the Franks". By 1103 his father Philip I had already associated him with the government of the kingdom. Louis married Lucienne de Rochefort ,

1377-658: The lords of Montfort-l'Amaury . Amaury III de Montfort held many castles which, when linked together, formed a continuous barrier between Louis and vast swathes of his domains, threatening all communication south of Paris. In 1121, Louis established the marchands de l'eau, to regulate trade along the Seine . In 1122, Aimeri, Bishop of Clermont , appealed to Louis after William VI, Count of Auvergne , had driven him from his episcopal town. When William refused Louis' summons, Louis raised an army at Bourges , and marched into Auvergne, supported by some of his leading vassals, such as

1428-449: The lordship of Bourbon from his nephew, Archambaud, a minor. Louis demanded the boy be restored to his rights but Aymon refused the summons. Louis raised his army and besieged Aymon at his castle at Germigny-l'Exempt , forcing its surrender. In early 1109, Louis besieged his half-brother, Philip, the son of Bertrade de Montfort , who was involved in brigandry and conspiracies against the King, at Mantes-la-Jolie . Philip's plots included

1479-439: The moment was gone. The people of Bruge rejected him and recognized Thierry of Alsace as their Count, and he quickly moved to enforce his claim. Louis called a great assembly at Arras, whereby the archbishop of Reims excommunicated Thierry and laid an interdict over the city of Lille. Louis abandoned William of Clito, who died during a siege at Alost on 27 July 1128, and after the whole country finally submitted to Thierry, Louis

1530-415: The murderers of Charles the Good and ousting the rival claimants. On 2 April he took Ghent , on 5 April Bruges, on 26 April he took Ypres , capturing William of Ypres and imprisoning him at Lille . He then quickly took Aire, Cassel and all the towns still loyal to William of Ypres. Louis's final act before leaving for France was to witness the execution of Charles the Good's murderers. They were hurled from

1581-565: The other hand, persons born in France with foreign citizenship (the children of immigrants) are not listed as immigrants. The Île de la Cité has been inhabited since the 1st century BC, when it was occupied by the Parisii tribe of the Gauls . The Right Bank was first settled in the 5th century. Since the end of the 19th century, le Marais has been populated by a significant Jewish population,

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1632-438: The peasantry and loot churches and abbeys, the latter deeds drawing the ire of the writers of the day, who were mostly clerics. In 1108, soon after he ascended the throne, Louis engaged in war with Hugh of Crécy , who was plaguing the countryside and had captured Eudes, Count of Corbeil, and imprisoned him at La Ferté-Alais . Louis besieged that fortress to free Eudes. Also in 1108, a seigneur named Aymon Vaire-Vache seized

1683-456: The population was 30,675, and the arrondissement hosted 41,424 jobs. ¹ The peak of population in this area occurred before 1861, but the arrondissement was created in 1860, so there are not accurate figures before 1861. An immigrant is a person born in a foreign country not having French citizenship at birth. An immigrant may have acquired French citizenship since moving to France, but is still considered an immigrant in French statistics. On

1734-608: The reign of Louis VI and his father Philip I. The second great challenge facing Louis was to counter the rising power of the Anglo-Normans under their capable new king, Henry I of England . From early in his reign (and during his father's reign) Louis faced the problem of the robber barons who resisted the King's authority and engaged in brigandry, making the area around Paris unsafe. From their castles, such as Le Puiset , Châteaufort , and Montlhéry , these barons would charge tolls, waylay merchants and pilgrims, terrorize

1785-403: The reign of Louis VI. During her time as queen (1115–1137), royal charters were dated with both her regnal year and that of the king. Suger became Louis's adviser even before he succeeded his father as king at the age of 26 on 29 July 1108. Louis's half-brother prevented him from reaching Rheims , and so Daimbert, Archbishop of Sens , crowned him in the cathedral of Orléans on 3 August. Ralph

1836-415: The roof of the church of Saint Donatian where they had committed their crime. Louis had his own candidate in mind and marched into Flanders with an army and urged the barons to elect William Clito , son of Robert Curthose , who had been disinherited of Normandy by his uncle Henry I of England , as their new Count. He had no better claim to Flanders than being the King's candidate but on 23 March 1127 he

1887-796: The soon to be Angevin Empire that would come to overshadow his successor, its seeds sown in the marriage between the Empress Matilda and Geoffrey Plantagenet and realised through their son, Henry II of England . Louis VI was interred in the Basilica of St Denis in Paris. He married in 1104: 1) Lucienne de Rochefort — the marriage was annulled on 23 May 1107 at the Council of Troyes by Pope Paschal II . Louis married in 1115: 2) Adélaide de Maurienne (1092–1154) With Marie de Breuillet , daughter of Renaud de Breuillet de Dourdan, Louis VI

1938-519: The uniformity of construction" and was called the "handsomest in France." King Charles' wooden bridge collapsed on 25 October 1499 near 9 a.m., likely due to structural instabilities caused by the lack of repairs. Stone foundations were laid for a new bridge that same year, while a ferry filled the transportation void. This time, the bridge was built with stone, as an arch bridge under the direction of Italian architect , scholar and Franciscan Friar , Fra Giovanni Giocondo , who had also overseen

1989-591: The vassal of St. Denis , the patron saint of Paris, whose banner he now carried and the proposed invasion was abandoned. Henry V died a year after the aborted campaign. In 1128 Henry I married his sole surviving legitimate child, the dowager Empress Matilda, to Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou . This would prove to be a dangerous alliance for the French monarchy during the reign of his successor, Louis VII of France . As Louis VI approached his end, there seemed to be reasons for optimism. Henry I of England had died on 1 December 1135 and Stephen of Blois had seized

2040-582: The war went well for Louis until the influential Theobald II, Count of Champagne , switched to Henry's side. By early 1112 Theobald had succeeded in bringing together a coalition of barons with grievances against Louis: Lancelin of Bulles, Ralph of Beaugency, Milo of Bray-sur-Seine, Hugh of Crecy, Guy of Rochfort, Hugh of Le Puiset and Hugh, Count of Troyes . In response Louis formed an alliance with Fulk V of Anjou and several Norman lords, including Amaury III de Montfort , Guillaume Crinspin and Robert of Bellême . Louis defeated Theobald's coalition but

2091-482: Was Hugh, Lord of Le Puiset , who was ravaging the lands around Chartres . In March 1111, Louis heard charges against Hugh at his court at Melun from Theobald II, Count of Champagne , the Archbishop of Sens , and also from bishops and abbots. Louis commanded Hugh to appear before him to answer these charges, but Hugh evaded the summons. Louis stripped him of his lands and titles and laid siege to Le Puiset. After

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2142-440: Was born around 1081 in Paris, the son of Philip I of France and Bertha of Holland . Abbot Suger of Saint Denis, who wrote a biography of Louis VI, tells us: "In his youth, growing courage matured his spirit with youthful vigour, making him bored with hunting and the boyish games with which others of his age used to enjoy themselves and forget the pursuit of arms." And "How valiant he was in youth, and with what energy he repelled

2193-669: Was elected Count by the Flemings . It was a triumph for Louis and demonstrated how far the Crown had come under his leadership, but it was a brief triumph. The new young Count fared badly, opposition was growing in the towns as a result of Clito's increasingly incompetent treatment of Flemish burghers. William's knights ran amok and the Flemings rebelled against Louis's candidate. Ghent and Bruge appealed to Thierry, Count of Flanders to Arnold of Denmark. Louis attempted to intervene again but

2244-463: Was in constant motion against them, leading his army from castle to castle, bringing law and order to his domains. The result was increased recognition of the King's authority and the Crown's ability to impose its will, so that all sectors of French society began to see the King as their protector. After seizing the English Crown, Henry I of England deprived his brother, Robert Curthose , of

2295-459: Was obliged to confirm his claim. On 25 November 1120, Louis' fortunes against Henry I of England were raised when Henry's heir, William Ætheling , drunkenly perished aboard the White Ship en route from Normandy to England, putting the future of Henry's dynasty and his position in doubt. By 1123 Louis was involved with a coalition of Norman and French seigneurs opposed to Henry. The plan

2346-564: Was outraged, demanding Henry, as his vassal , appear before him to account for his actions. The two kings met, in force, in March 1109 at the borders of their respective territories at the bridge of Neauphle on the Epte. Henry refused to relinquish Gisors. Louis challenged the English King to single combat to settle the issue. When Henry refused, war was inevitable, a war which would last, on and off, for twenty years. The first years of

2397-576: Was suddenly the most eligible heiress in Europe, and Louis wasted no time in marrying her to his own heir, the future Louis VII, at the Cathedral of Saint-André in Bordeaux on 25 July 1137. At a stroke Louis had added one of the most powerful duchies in France to the Capetian domains. Louis died of dysentery 7 days later, on 1 August 1137. Despite his achievements, it would be the growing power of

2448-568: Was the bridge-builder", punning on two possible meanings of pontifex . This refers to the architect, Fra Giovanni Giocondo, and the numerous bridges that had been built earlier upon that spot. The Pont Notre-Dame is centrally located in Paris' 4th arrondissement , connecting the Île de la Cité , one of the two natural islands on the Seine within the city limits, to the Rive Droite ( French : Right Bank ). Louis VI of France Louis VI (1 December 1081 – 1 August 1137), called

2499-483: Was the father of a daughter: 4th arrondissement of Paris The 4th arrondissement of Paris ( IV arrondissement ) is one of the twenty arrondissements of the capital city of France . In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as quatrième . Along with the 1st , 2nd and 3rd arrondissements , it is in the first sector of Paris, which maintains a single local government rather than four separate ones. The arrondissement, also known as Hôtel-de-Ville,

2550-541: Was the first member of the house of Capet to issue ordonnances applying to the whole of the kingdom of France. Louis was a warrior-king, but by his forties his weight had become so great that it was increasingly difficult for him to lead in the field (hence the epithet "le Gros" ). Details about his life and person are preserved in the Vita Ludovici Grossi Regis , a panegyric composed by his loyal advisor, Suger , abbot of Saint Denis. Louis

2601-589: Was to drive the English King from Normandy and replace him with William Clito. Henry, however, easily defeated this coalition then instigated his son-in-law, Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor , to invade France. Henry V had married the Empress Matilda , the English King's daughter and the future mother of Henry II of England , 9 years earlier, in hopes of creating an Anglo-German empire, though the couple remained childless. Like Louis, Henry V had designs on

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