The obelisk, at over 22 meters high, made from rose Granit and weighing in at an estimated 227 tonnes sits proudly in the centre of the Place de la Concorde and at over 3,000 year old is Paris’ oldest monument. Come with me and lets find out about the fraught journey of the Obelisk from Louxor to Paris.

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Paris has avoided destruction time and time again in her long history.  Saint Genevieve got down on her knees and, as if by miracle, Attila and his horde avoided Paris. Vikings came and went, siege, disease and urban planners all reeked havoc on Paris. Both World War I and II threated Paris with ruin. So it was surprising for me to learn that the Seine, the river that runs through Paris, fundamental to the cities identity, nearly caused its downfall in 1910 when it flooded.

For pictures, transcripts go to my website: panamepodcast.com

Music: The Owl, Dance Nostalgique

Further reading: 'Paris Under Water' by Jeffrey H. Jackson

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Come with me to the Saint Roch church and  have a look at some of the scars left on Paris. These particular ones date all the way back to the Revolution and can blamed a certain young Corsican and, in the words of historian Thomas Carlyle, a whiff of grapeshot.

Music by The Owl

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Revolutionary calendar

Further reading Andrew Roberts - Napoleon the Great.

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There is a legend that tells of 'Le Petit Homme Rouge', the Little Red Man that haunted the Tuileries palace for over 300 years, between about 1570 when it was built to 1871 when it was burnt down by the Paris Commune. He appeared only to the inhabitants of the palace, in other words kings, queens and emperors and was, usually, a harbinger of doom or bad tidings. Come with me and find out more about this curious urban legend.

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"God is forbidden by order of the King to perform any more miracles in the cemetery of Saint-Médard."

Find out why in this episode.

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music by The Owl

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La Cour des Miracles, so named because each night, as if by miracle, the blind would regain their sight, the deaf hear their names being called and the lame regain use of their limbs. In this episode come with me to the slum of 17th Century Paris precariously perched between the city proper and the outside world;  a hidden den of thieves, outlaws and prostitues made famous by Victor Hugo in his novel 'Notre Dame de Paris.'

Music by The Owl

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In this episode we will be finding out about one of Frances' most famous serial killers, a storybook monster come to life: Henri Desiré Landru, otherwise known as the real Blue Beard. Like his fictive namesake he had a full beard, even though it was not blue, and a propensity for murder.

Music from The Owl

Other clips include: Renaud, Charles Trent, Mr Verdoux

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When the French talk of The Revolution of 1789 they might want us to think ‘Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité’ but most of us probably think of the Guillotine. Come with me as we find traces of her around Paris and discover how her status, stature and use changed over the 200 years that she was used as the means of execution in France. 

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Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/panamepodcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/panamepodcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.