La Bastille

The Place de la Bastille is a square in Paris, where the Bastille prison stood until it was stormed and subsequently torn down between July 14, 1789 and July 14, 1790 during the French Revolution. The square straddles 3 arrondissements of Paris, namely the IVe, XIe and XIIe. The square and its surrounding areas are normally called simply Bastille.

History

The Bastille was a prison in Paris, known formally as Bastille Saint-Antoine - Number 232, Rue Saint-Antoine - best known today because of the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789, which is considered the beginning of the French Revolution. The event was commemorated one year later by the Fête de la Fédération. The French national holiday, celebrated annually on July 14 is officially the Fête Nationale, and officially commemorates the Fête de la Fédération, but it is commonly known in English as Bastille Day. Bastille is a French word meaning "castle" or "stronghold"; used as a single word ("le Bastide" in French), it refers to the prison.  
In June 16, 1792, it was decided the area occupied by the Bastille should be turned into a square celebrating liberty and that a column would be erected there. The first stone was laid by Palloy, however construction did not commence. A fountain was built in 1793.
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. It was designed to be 24 m (78 ft) in height, and to be cast from the bronze of cannons taken from the Spanish. Access to the top was to be achieved by a stairway set in one of the legs. However, only a full scale plaster model was built. Victor Hugo immortalized the monument in the novel Les Misérables where it is used as a shelter by Gavroche. The monument was demolished in 1846.
In 1833, Louis-Philippe decided to build the July Column as originally planned in 1792. It was inaugurated in 1840. The July Column (Colonne de Juillet) which commemorates the events of the July Revolution (1830) stands at the centre of the square.

The area today

The former location of the fort is currently called the place de la Bastille. It is home to the Opéra Bastille. The large ditch behind the fort has been transformed into a marina for pleasure boats, the Bassin de l'Arsenal, to the south, and a covered canal, the Canal Saint Martin, extending north from the marina beneath the vehicular roundabout that borders the location of the fort. Some undemolished remains of one tower of the fort were discovered during excavation for the Métro in 1899, and were moved to a park a few hundred metres away, where they are displayed today. The original outline of the fort is also marked on the pavement of streets and sidewalks that pass over its former location, in the form of special paving stones.

What to do ?

The square is a popular venue for Parisians and tourists, and is often home to concerts and similar events. Night life in the north eastern area of Bastille is strong, thanks to its many cafés, bars, night clubs, and concert halls.

Also in the Xe and XIe arrondissements :

The Bastille Opera. L¹Opéra Bastille is a modern opera house in Paris. It is the home base of the Opéra National de Paris and was designed to replace the Palais Garnier, but that did not happen. Operas are still given in that house, which is also used for ballet performances.
The Canal Saint Martin. It stretches from the Square Frédérick Lemaître to the Rue Lafayette. The canal was opened in 1825 after Napoleon had ordered the artificial waterway dug to supply Paris with water, however by the 1960s, traffic had dwindled to a trickle and the canal narrowly escaped being filled in and paved over for a highway. Today, the canal is a popular destination for Parisians and tourists who watch the barges navigate the series of locks and road bridges. It¹s a very peaceful and trendy place.