1.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
2.
Arrondissements of Paris
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The city of Paris is divided into twenty arrondissements municipaux, administrative districts, more simply referred to as arrondissements. These are not to be confused with departmental arrondissements, which subdivide the 101 French départements, the word arrondissement, when applied to Paris, refers almost always to the municipal arrondissements listed below. The number of the arrondissement is indicated by the last two digits in most Parisian postal codes, the twenty arrondissements are arranged in the form of a clockwise spiral, starting from the middle of the city, with the first on the Right Bank of the Seine. The French cities of Lyon and Marseille have, more recently, in French, notably on street signs, the number is often given in Roman numerals. For example, the Eiffel Tower belongs to the VIIe arrondissement while Gare de lEst is in the Xe arrondissement, with the Bois de Vincennes 2. Without the Bois de Vincennes 3, with the Bois de Boulogne 4. Without the Bois de Boulogne 5,2005 is the year of the most recent official estimate, population of these arrondissements may still be growing Each arrondissement is subdivided administratively into four quartiers. Paris thus has eighty quartiers administratifs, each containing a police station, for a table giving the names of the eighty quartiers, see Quarters of Paris. On 11 October 1795, Paris was divided into twelve arrondissements and they were numbered from west to east, with the numbers 1-9 situated on the Right Bank of the Seine and the numbers 10-12 on the Left Bank. Each arrondissement was subdivided into four quartiers, which corresponded to the 48 original districts created in 1790, emperor Napoleon III and the Prefect of the Seine Baron Haussmann developed a plan to incorporate several of the surrounding communes into the Paris jurisdiction in the late 1850s. Parliament passed the legislation in 1859, and the expansion took effect when the law was promulgated on 3 November 1859. The previous twelve arrondissements were reorganized from twelve arrondissements into twenty, the mayor of Passy, Possoz, devised the idea of a numbering the arrondissements in a spiral pattern beginning with the first centered on the imperial palaces, which put Passy in the sixteenth. In historical records, when it is important to distinguish between two systems, the original arrondissements are indicated by adding the term ancienne, for example, arrondissement, for other uses of the term. Paris districts Paris, je taime, film composed of sequences on each arrondissement Cobb, Richard, Breach. Official Paris website Diagrams of each arrondissement showing its quartiers administratifs
3.
11th arrondissement of Paris
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The 11th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. Situated on the Right Bank of the River Seine, the 11th is one of the most densely populated urban districts not just of Paris, the eleventh arrondissement is a varied and engaging area. The Place de la Bastille and the rue du Faubourg St Antoine are full of fashionable cafés, restaurants, and nightlife, the Oberkampf district to the north is another popular area for nightlife. The east is residential, with more wholesale commerce, while the areas around the Boulevard Voltaire. In recent years this district has emerged as one of the trendiest regions of Paris, on November 13th 2015, it was the site of coordinated shootings and bombings that left 132 dead. The land area of this arrondissement is 3.666 km2, the peak population of Pariss 11th arrondissement occurred in 1911, with 242,295 inhabitants. Today, the arrondissement remains the most densely populated in Paris, accompanied by a volume of business activity,149,102 inhabitants and 71,962 jobs in the last census. The population consists of a number of single adults, though its eastern portions are more family-oriented. There is a community spirit in most areas of the eleventh. Cirque dhiver Église Saint-Ambroise ESCP-EAP Musée Édith Piaf Musée du Fumeur 11th arrondissement travel guide from Wikivoyage Mairie du 11e website
4.
12th arrondissement of Paris
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The 12th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. The 12th arrondissement contains the Opéra de la Bastille, the second largest opera house in Paris and it was inaugurated in 1989, on the 200th anniversary of the storming of the Bastille. The Bois de Vincennes is also located in this arrondissement, the land area of this arrondissement is 16.324 km2, two-thirds of which consists of the Bois de Vincennes park. Excluding the Bois de Vincennes, its area is 6.377 km2. The peak of population of Pariss 12th arrondissement occurred in 1962 and was followed by three decades of decline, recently, however, the population has begun to grow again, since the restructuring of the 1990s. As of the last census, in 1999, the population was 136,591 inhabitants, the same census showed that the 12th arrondissement, heavily involved in business activity, contained 112,336 jobs, mainly around the new district of Bercy. The Derichebourg Group, the parent company of Servisair, has its office in the arrondissement. Foster Wheeler has its Foster Wheeler France division offices in the 12th arrondissement, lycée Paul Valéry is located in this arrondissement. Ensemble Scolaire Saint Michel de Picpus has two campuses in this arrondissmement
5.
Quarters of Paris
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Below are a few quarters that have developed or retained a character of their own, usually identifiable by their commercial or cultural activity, and often named for a neighbourhood landmark. Paris islands were once many, but over the centuries have been united or joined to the mainland, today there are but two adjacent islands forming the centre of Paris, the Île de la Cité and the Île Saint-Louis. The westernmost of two islands, the Île de la Cité, is Paris heart and origin. Only the westernmost and north-eastern extremities of the island remain residential today, purely residential in nature, this islands first use was for the grazing of market cattle and the stocking of wood. One of Frances first examples of urban planning, it was mapped and built from end to end during the 17th-century reigns of Henri IV, a peaceful oasis of calm in the busy Paris centre, this island has but narrow one-way streets and no metro station. Paris Rive Droite, formerly a marshland between two arms of the Seine river, remained uninhabited until the early 11th century. Once growth began there it soon eclipsed that of both the island and its Rive Gauche combined, and has remained Paris densest area ever since. Le Châtelet, a stronghold/gatehouse guarding the northern end of a bridge from the Cité island, was the origin of Paris first real Rive Droite growth. As Les Halles is a Metro and RER hub for connecting all suburban regions around the capital. Fast-food is the restaurant staple of this quarters most central region, one of the regions most prominent landmarks is the 1976-built Centre Georges Pompidou. Recently renovated, it houses the BPI, one of the citys largest libraries and places of study. The wide square in front is a place for street performers. Just to the east of the Place du Châtelet lies Pariss Hôtel de Ville and it stands on the almost exact location of a 12th-century house of columns belonging to the citys Prévôt des Marchands, then a later version built in 1628 whose shell is still the same today. Just across the street to the north of rue de Rivoli is the large 1870s-built BHV household shopping centre, the Louvre, once Paris second Royal Palace, is today a museum, garden, and, more recently, a shopping mall and Fashion show centre. This quarter in general has many 17th- and 18th-century buildings of large standing, as well as some of Paris more grandiose constructions, namely along the avenue de lOpéra, from the Haussmann era. Centred on Paris Opéra Garnier, completed in 1882, this quarter houses at once central Paris largest shopping centres and is an important banking centre. The streets behind both sides of the avenue de lOpéra have many Japanese restaurants, and most of the avenues in this area duty-free stores selling luxury brands, the rue Saint Honoré is known for its luxury boutiques selling all fashion labels of international renown. The Place Vendôme, around its famous Hôtel Ritz, is the centre of the Paris Triangle dOr of jewellers, there are many major banks and offices in this area as well
6.
French Revolution
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Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, the causes of the French Revolution are complex and are still debated among historians. Following the Seven Years War and the American Revolutionary War, the French government was deeply in debt, Years of bad harvests leading up to the Revolution also inflamed popular resentment of the privileges enjoyed by the clergy and the aristocracy. Demands for change were formulated in terms of Enlightenment ideals and contributed to the convocation of the Estates-General in May 1789, a central event of the first stage, in August 1789, was the abolition of feudalism and the old rules and privileges left over from the Ancien Régime. The next few years featured political struggles between various liberal assemblies and right-wing supporters of the intent on thwarting major reforms. The Republic was proclaimed in September 1792 after the French victory at Valmy, in a momentous event that led to international condemnation, Louis XVI was executed in January 1793. External threats closely shaped the course of the Revolution, internally, popular agitation radicalised the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins. Large numbers of civilians were executed by revolutionary tribunals during the Terror, after the Thermidorian Reaction, an executive council known as the Directory assumed control of the French state in 1795. The rule of the Directory was characterised by suspended elections, debt repudiations, financial instability, persecutions against the Catholic clergy, dogged by charges of corruption, the Directory collapsed in a coup led by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the French Revolution, almost all future revolutionary movements looked back to the Revolution as their predecessor. The values and institutions of the Revolution dominate French politics to this day, the French Revolution differed from other revolutions in being not merely national, for it aimed at benefiting all humanity. Globally, the Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies and it became the focal point for the development of all modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, socialism, feminism, and secularism, among many others. The Revolution also witnessed the birth of total war by organising the resources of France, historians have pointed to many events and factors within the Ancien Régime that led to the Revolution. Over the course of the 18th century, there emerged what the philosopher Jürgen Habermas called the idea of the sphere in France. A perfect example would be the Palace of Versailles which was meant to overwhelm the senses of the visitor and convince one of the greatness of the French state and Louis XIV. Starting in the early 18th century saw the appearance of the sphere which was critical in that both sides were active. In France, the emergence of the public sphere outside of the control of the saw the shift from Versailles to Paris as the cultural capital of France. In the 1750s, during the querelle des bouffons over the question of the quality of Italian vs, in 1782, Louis-Sébastien Mercier wrote, The word court no longer inspires awe amongst us as in the time of Louis XIV
7.
Paris
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Paris is the capital and most populous city of France. It has an area of 105 square kilometres and a population of 2,229,621 in 2013 within its administrative limits, the agglomeration has grown well beyond the citys administrative limits. By the 17th century, Paris was one of Europes major centres of finance, commerce, fashion, science, and the arts, and it retains that position still today. The aire urbaine de Paris, a measure of area, spans most of the Île-de-France region and has a population of 12,405,426. It is therefore the second largest metropolitan area in the European Union after London, the Metropole of Grand Paris was created in 2016, combining the commune and its nearest suburbs into a single area for economic and environmental co-operation. Grand Paris covers 814 square kilometres and has a population of 7 million persons, the Paris Region had a GDP of €624 billion in 2012, accounting for 30.0 percent of the GDP of France and ranking it as one of the wealthiest regions in Europe. The city is also a rail, highway, and air-transport hub served by two international airports, Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly. Opened in 1900, the subway system, the Paris Métro. It is the second busiest metro system in Europe after Moscow Metro, notably, Paris Gare du Nord is the busiest railway station in the world outside of Japan, with 262 millions passengers in 2015. In 2015, Paris received 22.2 million visitors, making it one of the top tourist destinations. The association football club Paris Saint-Germain and the rugby union club Stade Français are based in Paris, the 80, 000-seat Stade de France, built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, is located just north of Paris in the neighbouring commune of Saint-Denis. Paris hosts the annual French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament on the red clay of Roland Garros, Paris hosted the 1900 and 1924 Summer Olympics and is bidding to host the 2024 Summer Olympics. The name Paris is derived from its inhabitants, the Celtic Parisii tribe. Thus, though written the same, the name is not related to the Paris of Greek mythology. In the 1860s, the boulevards and streets of Paris were illuminated by 56,000 gas lamps, since the late 19th century, Paris has also been known as Panam in French slang. Inhabitants are known in English as Parisians and in French as Parisiens and they are also pejoratively called Parigots. The Parisii, a sub-tribe of the Celtic Senones, inhabited the Paris area from around the middle of the 3rd century BC. One of the areas major north-south trade routes crossed the Seine on the île de la Cité, this place of land and water trade routes gradually became a town
8.
Place de la Bastille
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No vestige of the prison remains. The square straddles 3 arrondissements of Paris, namely the 4th, 11th and 12th, the square and its surrounding areas are normally called simply Bastille. The July Column which commemorates the events of the July Revolution stands at the center of the square, other notable features include the Bastille Opera, the Bastille subway station and a section of the Canal Saint Martin. Prior to 1984, the former Bastille railway station stood where the house now stands. The square is home to concerts and similar events, the north-eastern area of Bastille is busy at night with its many cafés, bars, night clubs, and concert halls. As a consequence of its significance, the square is often the site or point of departure of political demonstrations. At that time it housed political prisoners, but also religious prisoners, seditious writers. The prisoners were held within the 5-7 story towers, each having a room around 4.6 m across and containing various articles of furniture. The governor of the prison was given an allowance per prisoner. In terms of standards, there were many worse prisons in France, including the dreaded Bicêtre, however, in terms of popular literary accounts, the Bastille was a place of horror and oppression, a symbol of autocratic cruelty. The confrontation between the commoners and the Ancien Régime ultimately led to the people of Paris storming the Bastille on July 14,1789, following several days of disturbances. At this point, the prison was empty, with only seven inmates, four counterfeiters. The regular garrison consisted of about 80 invalides under Governor Bernard-René de Launay and they had however been reinforced by a detachment of 32 grenadiers from one of the Swiss mercenary regiments summoned to Paris by the Monarchy shortly before 14 July. A crowd of around 600 people gathered outside around mid-morning, calling for the surrender of the prison, the removal of the guns, two people chosen to represent those gathered were invited into the fortress and slow negotiations began. In the early afternoon, the broke into the undefended outer courtyard. A spasmodic exchange of gunfire began, in mid-afternoon the crowd was reinforced by mutinous Gardes Françaises of the Royal Army, de Launay ordered a ceasefire, despite his surrender demands being refused, he capitulated and the victors swept in to liberate the fortress at around 5,30. On 16 June 1792, the occupied by the Bastille was turned into a square celebrating liberty. The first stone was laid by Palloy, however, construction never took place, in 1808, as part of several urban improvement projects for Paris, Napoléon planned to have a monument in the shape of an elephant built here, the Elephant of the Bastille
9.
Bois de Vincennes
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The Bois de Vincennes, located on the eastern edge of Paris, is the largest public park in the city. It was created between 1855 and 1866 by the Emperor Napoleon III, the park is next to the Château de Vincennes, a former residence of the Kings of France. The Bois de Vincennes has an area of 995 hectares, making it slightly larger than the Bois de Boulogne. It occupies ten percent of the area of Paris, and is almost as large as the first six arrondissements in the center of the city combined. The Bois de Vincennes is about three times larger than Central Park in New York City, and is larger than Richmond Park in London. Only about half of the Bois de Vincennes is covered with trees, the bois de Vincennes was part of the ancient forest that surrounded the ancient Roman town of Lutetia, at that time it was called Vilcena, the origin of the present name. In about 1150 King Louis VII built a lodge at the site of the present chateau. King Philippe-Auguste enclosed the forest with a wall, stocked it with game, King Louis IX, or Saint Louis built a chapel next to the castle to house an important religious relic, which he believed to be the crown of thorns from the Crucifixion of Jesus. He was also famous for holding a court of justice under an oak near the chateau. In 1336 King Philip VI of France began construction of the donjon of the Chateau de Vincennes. The work was continued by his successor, Jean II of France, and finished by Charles V of France and he also began to rebuild the chapel founded by Saint Louis. The new chapel was called La-Sainte Chapelle, modeled after the Saint-Chapelle in the Palais de la Cité in Paris and it was not finished until the 16th century. A hunting party in the forest is shown as the December scene in the Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, with the towers of the chateau visible in the background. The forest was also the home of a community of monks of the order of the Minimes, in 1654 Cardinal Mazarin commissioned the royal architect Louis Le Vau to build a new palace for King Louis XIV next to the chateau. The new palace featured a pavilion for the King and another for the Queen, separated by a portico, the donjon had been transformed into prison in the 15th century. The palace was popular with the King for a time, but once Louis XIV established his residence at Versailles, in the 18th century Louis XV opened the park to the public, excepting servants in livery. He had hundreds of trees planted and laid out long straight alleys through the forest in the form of intersecting stars, in 1731 he constructed a pyramid-shaped monument to mark the meeting point of the two main alleys, which can still be seen. Beginning in 1794, large parts of the Bois de Vincennes were turned into a training ground
10.
Bastille Day
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Bastille Day is the common name given in English-speaking countries/lands to the French National Day, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. In France, it is called la Fête nationale and commonly and legally le 14 juillet. On 19 May 1789, Louis XVI invited Estates-General to air their grievances, the deputies of the Third Estate, representing the common people—the two others were the Catholic clergy and the nobility —decided to break away and form a National Assembly. The Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath, swearing not to separate until a constitution had been established and they were gradually joined by delegates of the other estates, Louis XVI started to recognize the validity of their concerns on 27 June. The assembly renamed itself the National Constituent Assembly on 9 July, jacques Necker, the finance minister, who was sympathetic to the Third Estate, was dismissed on 11 July. As it happened, at the time of the attack in July 1789 there were only seven inmates, the crowd was eventually reinforced by mutinous Gardes Françaises, whose usual role was to protect public buildings. They proved a match for the forts defenders, and Governor de Launay. However, possibly because of a misunderstanding, fighting resumed, shortly after the storming of the Bastille, late in the evening of 4 August, after a very stormy session of the Assemblée Constituante, feudalism was abolished. On 26 August, the Declaration of the Rights of Man, the Fête de la Fédération on 14 July 1790 was a celebration of the unity of the French nation during the French Revolution. The aim of this celebration, one year after the Storming of the Bastille, was to symbolize peace, the event took place on the Champ de Mars, which was at the time far outside Paris. The place had been transformed on a basis by the population of Paris. A mass was celebrated by Talleyrand, bishop of Autun, the popular General Lafayette, as captain of the National Guard of Paris and a confidant of the king, took his oath to the constitution, followed by King Louis XVI. On 30 June 1878, a feast was arranged in Paris to honour the French Republic. On 14 July 1879, there was another feast, with a semi-official aspect, the days events included a reception in the Chamber of Deputies, organised and presided over by Léon Gambetta, a military review at Longchamp, and a Republican Feast in the Pré Catelan. All through France, Le Figaro wrote, people feasted much to honour the storming of the Bastille, on 21 May 1880, Benjamin Raspail proposed a law to have the Republic choose the 14 July as a yearly national holiday. The Assembly voted in favour of the proposal on 21 May and 8 June, the Senate approved it on 27 and 29 June, favouring 14 July against 4 August. The law was made official on 6 July 1880, and the Ministry of the Interior recommended to Prefects that the day should be celebrated with all the brilliance that the local resources allow, indeed, the celebrations of the new holiday in 1880 were particularly magnificent. This day cannot be blamed for having shed a drop of blood and it was the consecration of the unity of France
