43<* LETTERS FROM PARIS* 



Charlemagne, Louis le Debonnaire, &c. only ftaid 

 there during their travels. It had no fuburbs on the 

 ©ppofite Ihore of the Seine. The cathedral [at prefent 

 Notre Dame] formed its boundary towards the eaft, 

 a ftrong tower [now the grand chatelet] towards, the 

 north, another [le petit chatelet] towards the fouth, 

 and the royal palace [now the palais de juftice] towards 

 the weft. Its whole circumference might be about a 

 thoufand toifes, or fomewhat lefs than a league. Mark 

 this circumftance, that you may be a little furprifed, 

 when I come to give you the prefent circumference of 

 Paris according to the lateft plan. 



There, then, where now the boulevards, the palais 

 royal, the Louvre, the Tuilleries, &c. appear in fo 

 much ftate, was at that time nothing but marfhy 

 woods, or bogs, or fields, or meadows, with outworks 

 of no confequence fcattered , among them. Through 

 thefe waftes accefs was had to the northern bank of the 

 Seine, on which fome fmall houfes flood ; and, form- 

 ing dirty ftreets, were overlooked by a ftrong citadel 

 [le grand chatelet] defended by a great bridge [now 

 the pont au change], which led to a little ifle, inhabited 

 folely by priefts and a few merchants, and from which 

 on the fouthern fide, another fmaller bridge [now Pe- 

 tit Pont] conducts again to the oppofite Ihore ; where 

 was another tower, [le petit chatelet] ; and three or 

 four hundred houfes ftood fcattered along the Ihore, 

 among vineyards and gardens. The houfes were round, 

 very fmall, built of wood and plaifter, without bricks, 

 and covered with ftraw and rufhes. Such was Paris fo 

 late as under the kings of the third race, till the 

 twelfth century. 



It 



