Place de la Concorde
Place de la Concorde is one of the narrated stops on the self-guided Paris audio walking tour in Gingerguide. Plan about ~30 min here. Press play at the spot for its two to three minute story, or ask the AI guide anything about it.
- Type square
- Suggested visit ~30 min
- Paris Paris guide
About Place de la Concorde
Paris's largest square, where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were guillotined, now graced by a 3,300-year-old Egyptian obelisk and flanked by two monumental fountains.
Place de la Concorde is Paris's largest and most historically charged square, covering 8.6 hectares at the meeting point of the Tuileries Garden, the Champs-Élysées, the Seine, and the Madeleine. Designed by Ange-Jacques Gabriel in 1755 as "Place Louis XV", with an equestrian statue of the king at its centre, it was rechristened "Place de la Révolution" in 1792 when the Revolution came. The guillotine was erected here, and between 1792 and 1795, 1,119 people were executed on this spot, including King Louis XVI on 21 January 1793 and Queen Marie Antoinette on 16 October 1793.
Rebaptised "Place de la Concorde" in 1795, a name chosen to express the desire for harmony after the bloodshed, it was later adorned with its most distinctive feature: the Obelisk of Luxor. This rose-granite monolith, 23 metres tall and weighing 230 tonnes, is 3,300 years old, carved during the reign of Ramesses II. It was a gift from Egypt to France in 1836, and raising it on its current pedestal required some of the most complex engineering of the 19th century.
Did you know? The Luxor Obelisk in the centre of Place de la Concorde is 3,300 years old, it was carved during the reign of Ramesses II, making it the oldest monument in Paris.
How long should you spend at Place de la Concorde?
Plan about ~30 min at Place de la Concorde. That is enough to take it in and hear its narrated story; stay longer if it grabs you. The tour is self-guided, so there is no rush.
Is Place de la Concorde worth visiting?
Place de la Concorde is one of the 44 sights the Gingerguide team researched and narrated in Paris, so it earns a place on a self-guided walk. Its story explains why it matters, and you can ask the AI guide anything the story leaves open.
Nearby stops in Paris
Hear the story of Place de la Concorde
Preview the Paris tour free in the Gingerguide app.