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Let's now head to the city center, right to the south of this island
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Imagine for a second that you're a gladiator, fighting in an arena with 10,000 screaming and cheering people
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and behind these grids right here are wild animals just waiting to attack you
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No, we are not in Rome, this is still Paris, and this right here is one of the last witnesses of the Roman Empire in the city
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Welcome to the Aren de Lutes. It might initially surprise you to hear that such a coliseum exists in Paris
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but the Roman Empire ruled over this area of France. In this lesson, I'm going to show you
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how those traces of the Roman Empire reveal a totally different side of Paris and ultimately
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created a tradition of preserving the past. For a few centuries, the Areine de Lutèce was the
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setting of gladiator fights, but also theater performances and even water jousting. And yes
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this means that the arenas could fill up with water. The structure was destroyed during Germanic
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invasions and then rebuilt again in the 6th century. But eventually, the amphitheater was
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covered by the sands of time and buried under the grounds of a developing city. Then, as we talk
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about in our lesson on the Haussmann redesign in 1860, Paris was undergoing a massive citywide
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redesign Developers accidentally dug up the arenas during work on the adjacent Rue Monge The city was looking to build transport networks with omnibuses Not those these And they nearly destroyed the arenas when they stumbled upon it
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However, a committee of intellectuals led by Victor Hugo reached out to the authorities to make sure this trace of the Parisian past was preserved
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Thank God. This plaque right here paraphrases his words where he makes the argument
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that this arena is proof of the greatness of ancient Paris. and he talks about how the past can be the foundation for this city to create a better future
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In fact, he ties in a third element, this last line right here that says, «Eselle de tes espoirs » is in reference to the city and our hopes
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And I feel hopeful about the future, seeing how far we've come from then to now
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Today, the arenas are mostly a public park where people play petanque, which is very common here
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and soccer, and where occasional events are organized. Access is free, but note that the park is closed at night
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The arenas are not the only surviving trace of the Roman Empire in Paris
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Just a couple of streets nearby, you'll find the Therme de Cluny
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These used to be thermal baths. You can imagine that at that time during Roman rule running water in houses was not even a possibility for most of the population How things have changed am I right So these were first and foremost public baths with cold and hot pools where people could come and wash
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And that provided a very real utility in terms of hygiene and health
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The whole thing is an impressive feat of engineering ingenuity typical of the Romans
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They're bringing in water through aqueducts from kilometers away, a system for heating that water
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honestly except for a few sanitary concerns modern-day spas have nothing on this system
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i would go the down the cuny were also much more than just bats they were also a place of social
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gathering as well as a spot to practice sports the term gymnasium actually comes from the name of one
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of the rooms in roman bats because the bats were free to access they were meant to show the locals
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the benefit of being ruled by foreigners and convince the population to embrace Pax Romana
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or Roman peace. Of course, as with any building that's a couple thousand years old, its history
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is made of successive destructions and renovations. The initial complex was much bigger, but a big
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part of it here remained in use until the middle of the 18th century, believe it or not, and has
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been preserved since. Today, the Tarmes de Cluny hosts a museum dedicated to the Middle Ages
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in Paris and part of the visit involves touring some of the better preserved
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areas of the building You can check the museum website which will include in the PDF for more information on opening hours and tours However if you want to go deeper on understanding and seeing traces of that time period in Paris
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the crypt of Notre Dame on the nearby Ile de la Cité is also a fascinating museum that illuminates the Roman history of the city
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Seeing these reminders of the Roman heritage from gigantic arenas to public bath complexes
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you can imagine how immensely powerful the empire must have felt and seemed at the time
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You can see how frail that power really was as well, as it took just a couple of hundred years for it to come crashing down
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you know, most powerful empire in the world to falling apart, essentially
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and for the seats of its institution to be almost lost in memory
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These landmarks now serve as a reminder that Europe really could have been unified
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under one single power. The influence that the Romans had on everything from science to the arts
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to even language is clearly visible, not just in Paris, but all around the continent. And I guess
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I'm just glad that we can come and appreciate these places for what they once were without any
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of the original violent activities that once took place here. So if you do look at this arena and
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think of gladiators, let's just be glad that today the structure serves a much more peaceful
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purpose. We can remember what happened. We don't have to live it
