Dark history around Paris (part 2)

Open the walking route in Maps See it on the Dark Atlas

1. Start · Paris · 1789

   The Doctor Who Wanted A Kinder Death Machine

   He proposed a single humane device to make executions equal for every citizen — his name became a byword for the blade.

2. same spot · Paris · 1789

   The Enslaved Girl Who Nearly Chose Freedom

   In Paris she could have walked free of Jefferson forever, and for a moment, she almost did.

3. same spot · Paris · 1792

   The Queen's Friend Whose Head Was Paraded on a Pike

   She could have fled the Revolution safely, but chose loyalty to Marie Antoinette, and it destroyed her horrifically.

4. same spot · Paris · 1386

   The Rape Trial That Ended In Trial By Combat

   A woman's accusation of rape led to France's last judicial duel, with her own life staked on the outcome.

5. same spot · Paris · 1572

   The Wedding That Turned Into A Massacre

   Six days after a wedding meant to bring peace, Paris turned on the Protestant guests who had come to celebrate it.

6. same spot · Paris · 1794

   The Woman Who Cast Faces From The Guillotine

   A wax modeller who claimed to have taught a princess at Versailles later said she took casts from the faces of the guillotined.

7. 819 m on · Île de la Cité, Paris · 1314

   The Templar Who Cursed A King From The Flames

   Arrested on a single dawn across France on fabricated charges, the last Templar grand master burned still proclaiming his order's innocence.

Coordinates mark the place of each story, and some are approximate. Check opening times and access before you go.