Mysteries of Old Paris: from the Grève to the Innocents: audio walk in Paris

The dark side of central Paris, with every legend in its place: the square of the gallows and the Midsummer bonfire, the poisoner Madame de Sévigné watched go by, a murderer dragged out of a church, Nicolas Flamel and his philosopher's stone, the warrior in golden boots, the Cemetery of the Innocents and the street where Henri the Fourth was killed.

1.25 km · ≈ 50 min · 12 stops · ES / EN

Mysteries of Old Paris: from the Grève to the Innocents

What this walk is about

You start in front of the Hôtel de Ville, on the old Place de Grève, where the city punished and celebrated in the same spot, where the Marquise de Brinvilliers met her end, and where a palace burned in 1871 only to rise again exactly as it was. At the Tour Saint-Jacques you'll hear why Nicolas Flamel's tomb was there, how he got his reputation as an immortal alchemist, and what Pascal climbed up to measure. At Saint-Merri, there's a murderer the heir to the throne dragged out of the church's sanctuary, a warrior buried in golden boots, and the barricade Victor Hugo made ring out in Les Misérables. Behind it, a fountain of moving figures sits on top of a laboratory of sound. You finish on the square of the Innocents, above ten centuries of dead moved away by night, and in the street where a traffic jam left Henri the Fourth at the mercy of his assassin.

Start
The river beach where the scaffold stood
Finish
A king killed in a traffic jam
Who it is for
A walk for anyone curious about mystery and legend. For anyone who wants an evening stroll.
Languages
Spanish and British English
Underfoot
The walk is mostly level.
Themes
Mysteries, Crimes and LegendsScientists, Engineers and Inventions

The route, stop by stop

An outline of the walk. The full stories are in the app.

Loading the map…

Open a marker to see its page. Use two fingers to move the map on mobile.

  1. 1

    The river beach where the scaffold stood

  2. 2

    The poisoner and her witness

  3. 3

    The town hall rebuilt after the fire

  4. 4

    The tower that outlived its church

  5. 5

    The alchemist who wasn't one

  6. 6

    Does air weigh anything?

  7. 7

    The killer dragged from sanctuary

  8. 8

    Two defenders, a falconer and a barricade

  9. 9

    A sound laboratory beneath a fountain

  10. 10

    The dead moved in the night

  11. 11

    The travelling fountain and the enclosed woman

  12. 12

    A king killed in a traffic jam

Walking directions are based on mapped pedestrian routes. Check local access and signs; the route is not an accessibility guarantee. Times are approximate.

Paris, before you go

Paris works best a neighbourhood at a time. Combine a walk, a pause and another look: the distances on the map can be deceptive.

More walks nearby

Good to know

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What is Podtour?

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