L'Indépendant du 4e Arrondissement de Paris

MDCCXXXIX [English Version] An angry reaction to those pro-Europeans who are playing a dangerous game.

I am writing this article in a state of exasperation as a result of some of the remarks I have heard recently concerning the possibility of « Brexit » as a result of the referendum in the United Kingdom due to take place on Thursday. I am reacting to comments made by a number of apparently pro-European centrists who have been saying that it might not be such a bad thing if we did get rid of the United Kingdom in this way as it might allow Europe to get off to a fresh start .

1°) I believe that this point of view fails to take proper account of an important factor. Should the United Kingdom leave the European Union they would be sending a very dangerous signal to europhobes across the continent. Public feeling is running so high against what the European Union has become that there is a real danger of the whole edifice being brought down. The populist governements of Central and Eastern Europe may well be excited by the prospect of no longer having to bow to the rules of democracy and European values. Perhaps even in Western Europe this situation could come to pass... 

2°) I consider this situation to be terribly unfair for those British citizens who are campaigning for the Remain movement (and how could I not think of the abominable murder of Jo Cox) . The United Kingdom belongs to the European continent both culturally and historically. During WW2, liberty triumphed thanks to them. In our darkest hours (between June 1940 and June 1941), they fought on alone against Nazi barbarism and London served as a rallying point for all the European resistance movements, be they French, Belgian, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Yugoslavian or Greek.  It seems to me that to let the British leave the European Union without a second thought because we have had enough of them and would prefer to continue without them would be appalling.

I sincerely hope that the British will vote to remain members of the European Union but that this referendum will encourage European leaders across the continent to ask themselves what needs to be done to encourage more widespread enthusiasm for the idea of European Unity. Europe needs to be closer to her people. And this includes the British people.

Many thanks to Helen who translated this post into English. A contribution to French/British friendship.

==> French version

DCCXXXVII : rue du Petit-Musc : a reference to a job that has disappeared in this street...

Cet article est paru en français le 19 mai 2008.

 "Petit musc" street is located in the Eastern part of the 4th arrondissement called "quartier Arsenal".  In French "musc" is an old word signifying perfume but it seems that the origin of the name of this street is far from this meaning. Indeed, it seems that it is the result of a progressive transformation from "la pute y muse" which means "the whore is musing". This street already was known in 1358 and it was not far from Saint-Paul Harbour. It was a "val d'amour" (an amazing French euphemism meaning a brothel used by one of the most famous books about the history of Paris written by Jacques Hillairet, Connaissance du Vieux Paris, Edition Princesse, 1965, page 15).

Agrandir le plan

French version of this post

DCCXXIV : The stalls of Saint-Gervais-Saint-Protais : a rich testimony of daily life 5 centuries ago.

Cet article est paru en français le 21 janvier 2009.

 I already translated into English a post about the facade of Saint-Gervais-Saint-Protais Church. Here is another one to point out the fact that, inside in the choir, one can find splendid stalls (seats for the clerics attending the mass). According to the Guide bleu, some of them  date back to the reign of Henry II, the others are from the 17th century.

My interest was attracted to the scenes of daily life depicted on these stalls. The clothes suggest that the figures are from the 16th century and so these are stalls from Henry II's reign (1547-1559). You can notice that in these times, in sacred places, they did not mind depicting scenes that are far from religious...

- an intellectual (may be a cleric) in his study :

- a stone-cutter :

 

- a winegrower, a cooper, a wine merchant or... a wine lover :

- a couple dancing or... quarelling :

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- a scene with a man joining a woman bathing. They don't seem to be quarelling...

- a woman being blessedby a priest whereas behind her a figures seems far from benevolent... maybe a pick pocket :

-a surprising scene with a kneeling man on the right with a leg above his head. Maybe a surgeon (the 16th century is the epoch of the famous French surgeon Ambroise Paré at the beginning of modern medicine) :

French version of this post.

DCCXVIII (post in English) : A vestige (a bit) forgotten of the Bastille

Cet article a été publié en français le 14 juillet 2008.

One can see remains of the past in the streets and squares of the 4th arrondissement which have sometimes been a bit forgotten. Here is an example which, however, concerns a very famous place : the Bastille fortress.

Indeed, on the photo above, one can see the remains of the foundation of one of the towers found when metro line 1 was being dug in 1899, a few hundred meters from where it is now. They were moved here, in the garden H. Galli.

It's well known that this prison was destroyed after the taking of the Bastille by Parisians on July 14th 1789. It was formerly a fortress built in the 14th century by king Charles V called "the wise".

The desctruction of the Bastille was nearly complete because the stones were sold by entrepreneurs eager to clear this place. Some stones were carved into models of the fortress (one can be seen in Carnavalet museum), others were used to build constructions such as the Concorde bridge.

So what remains in the garden H.Galli is very rare.
 

DCCX (post in English) : pont-au-change, an ancient bridge by its location

Voici la traduction en anglais d'un article publié en français le 15 avril 2009.

Here is the second post I've translated into English about the bridges of the 4th arrondissement.

The "Pont au Change" (which means Money exchange Bridge) marks the border between the 1st and the 4th arrondissement. The current bridge dates from the 19th century as we can guess thanks to the big "N's" which refer to the emperors of the Bonaparte family. It was inaugurated by Napoleon III on August 15th, 1860. So this bridge is much less ancient than Pont Marie, built 200 years earlier,  about which I already published a post.

However, it seems that, even in the time of Lutetia (when Paris was a roman city), a bridge linked, in the same place,  City Island to  the Right Bank. For a long while, it was called the "Grand Pont" (the large bridge) in opposition to the "Petit Pont" (the small bridge) which crosses City Island's southern branch (much narrower than the northern one).

This bridge took the name "pont-aux-changeurs" (The money changers' bridge), from the 12th century on, by Louis VII's order who decided that the changers had to set up shop here to allow the exchanges between the many currencies  in use in the Occident. They often sat on a little bench, called "banc" in French. That is the origin of the word "Banquier" that is to say banker in English. The word was also used in Italian. Those people were the leaders of trade at the time. "Rue des Lombards" is not far north from this bridge.

The bridge was rebuilt in the 17th century from 1639 to 1647. It was a 7 arched bridge which - as was common at the time- featured houses. The Pont Neuf (new Bridge) constructed a few decades before (in the 1st arrondissement now) was exceptionnal because it didn't have any. I found a postcard in my private colllection which shows a painting depicting the houses of pont-au-change :

 The painter, Hubert Robert, a connoisseur of ruins, painted, in 1788, the destruction of the houses on this bridge (you can read a paper about it on the website of the city of Paris).

To pay tribute to the antiquity of this place, the 19th century architects, De la Galisserie and Vaudray, designed a stone bridge (whereas iron had become standard as can be seen with Pont d'Arcole and Pont Notre-Dame).

The current Pont au change is divided in three arches :

This post was first published in French on April 159th, 2010.

DCXCIV : Information about rubbish sorting in English language / Information en anglais à propos du tri sélectif

 

Voici un article que j'ai écrit d'abord en anglais mais je commence d'abord par la version anglaise. La traduction en français est en fin d'article !

On the 3rd may, 2010, during the 4th arrondissement council, there was a debate about the information in English concerning rubbish sorting. Mrs Faugeron, a deputy mayor from the green party, suggested that there should be information signs in English language about rubbish sorting. Indeed, in the 4th arrondissement, there are many tourists and foreign residents, most of them can understand English.

The mayor of the 4th arrondissement, Mrs Bertinotti,  retorted that according to the city of Paris, it was not possible. Indeed, it was said that this problem only concerns touristy areas and not the whole of Paris so it had to be paid by local districts. And finally, it was said that the 4th arrondissement has not the financial means to put such signs in every building. It was also suggested that the people who let flats are in charge of informing their foreign renters.

Furthermore,  a few days later, I touched on this subject in my "conseil de quartier" (the council where very local debates are held). I was answered that the current signs in French are easily understandable for foreign residents.

I decided to take the horse by its reins and to make a translation of the signs. I am not too bad in English but I must admit that I needed to be helped by an (American-)English speaking person. Indeed, for instance, the word "en vrac", that can be seen at the upper left hand corner, is far from easy to understand. Whereas the French word "pêle mêle" would be much transparent as it means "pell mell" in English.

So I publish with this post, the original sign translated into English. Everybody can use it. I demand no copyright on it...

Pay attention. In each city of France, the colors of the rubbish bins have not the same sense !

Paris is the most visited city in the world but there is a lot to do to better to receive foreigners.

Traduction en français :

Le 3 mai 2010, lors du Conseil du 4e arrondissement, il y a eu un débat à propos de l'information en anglais relative au tri sélectif. Mme Faugeron, une maire adjointe verte, a suggéré que les panneaux d'information à propos du tri sélectif soient traduits en anglais.

La maire du 4e arrondissement, Dominique Bertinotti a répliqué en disant que d'après la Ville de Paris, ce n'était pas possible. En effet, il a été dit que c'était un problème qui ne concernait que les zones touristiques et non pas tout Paris. De ce fait, il devait être pris en charge par les mairies d'arrondissement. Et finalement il a été ajouté que le 4e arrondissement n'avait pas les moyens financiers de mettre de tels panneaux dans chaque immeuble. Il a aussi été suggéré que ce sont les propriétaires qui louent leur appartement qui sont en charge d'informer leurs locataires étrangers.

De plus, quelques jours plus tard, j'ai abordé ce sujet lors du Conseil de quartier Saint-Gervais (le conseil dans lequel les sujets d'intérêt local sont abordés). On m'a répondu que les panneaux actuels déjà en place sont facilement compréhensibles par les résidents étrangers.

J'ai décidé de prendre les taureaux par les cornes et de faire une traduction de ces panneaux. Je ne suis pas trop mauvais en anglais mais je dois admettre que j'ai eu beson de l'aide d'un anglophone (un Américain). En effet, par exemple, le mot "en vrac" que l'on peut voir en haut à gauche de la version française n'est pas facile à comprendre pour un étranger. Alors que le mot français "pêle mêle" serait beaucoup plus transparent car le mot anglais pour "En vrac" est "pell mell" (un mot d'origine française bien sûr !).

Donc, je publie avec cet article le panneau initial dans sa version anglaise. J'autorise tout le monde à l'utiliser. Je ne revendique aucun copyright sur la traduction !

DCLXXXVI (post in English) : the motto of the French Republic on the facade of the District Hall

Cet article est paru en français le 15 avril 2008.

I recently published a post to explain how the 4th arrondissement is governed. (Post published on April 9th). If you are interested, tonight at 7 P.M. you can go to the District Hall of the 4th arrondissement to attend a meeting of the "Conseil d'arrondissement".

In April 2008, I published this post to congratulate the mayor of the 4th arrondissement. Indeed, as a few week before I had written a post to underline that the local district hall had kept an imperial settings (I also translated this post into English), the mayor said during a conseil d'arrondissement that even if she had been in office for 7 years, she had never noticed that the state motto was not written on the facade (as is the case in most city Halls in France). She announced that it would be done as soon as possible.

On April 6th, 2008, I noticed that it had been taken care of. I find the results to be quite successful. As a teacher of civic education in a secondary school, I can only applaud.

France's motto,  Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité" was chosen in 1848 during the 2nd Republic. It is one of the symbols included in article 1 of the current Constitution of the 5th Republic.

This post was first published in French on April 15th, 2008.

DCXXLIV : A new magazine for the lovers of Paris who want to know the capital better

Cet article est paru en français le 8 avril 2010.

Here is a magazine that I wish to point out to the readers of L'Indépendant du 4e. The chief editor sent me a kind email to ask for my opinion. Its title is "VIVRE Paris" (not to be confused with the association called "Vivre Paris !" which groups together associations which protect the  interests of the inhabitants of a neighbourhood and try to create links between them).

At the beginning of this post, Iam  publishing the cover of the second edition (spring 2010). This issue is not focused on the 4th arrondissement (there is only one post on page 44 about "L'as du fallafel") but that gives us good reason to discover the other parts of Paris...

Just one regret, on page 50, supports the idea that the "City of Lights" has lost its splendour with the idea that "the nightlife has been put down". In my opinion, Paris is still the most visited city in the world and it is surprising to assert that it has become a dead city.  The districts, such as the 4th arrondissement, are not destined to be become an amusement park (which they never have been).

Anyway, I wish a long life to this quarterly. For 5,95€, you are sure to learn a lot about Paris (a subscription is available, 20 € a year [4 issues] or 37 € euros for 2 years [8 issues]).  

This magazine is written in French but there is a "sommaire" in English.

You can find VIVRE Paris in kiosks and thanks to this link : VIVRE Paris, le Magazine.

 When will there be a section dedicated to the 4th arrondissement ? (In the first issue there was a post about the 5th and the second issue, is about the 9th arrondissement). I have been told that the third will be about the 11th.

This post was published in French on April 8th, 2010.

DCLXV : (post in English) : thankfully there's a sign !

Cet article est paru en français le 29 septembre 2008 (et il est toujours d'actualité...)

 Here is one of those signs which are as indispensable as they are beautiful and which contribute to Parisian charm, especially in center city. It would be a pity that a tourist who has gotten so close to Notre-Dame would loose his path...

On top of it all, the sign was crooked (it has been straightened since). This is Paris, the town most visited in the world.

I still believe that we should reconsider how the signs are disposed in Paris.

This post was published on September 29th, 2008.

DCLXII (post in English) : Elisa Deroche : a lady of the 4th arrondissement who should be better known.

Cet article est la traduction en anglais d'articles publiés en français le 2 mars 2009 et le 23 août 2009.

I wrote a post about the sign dedicated to Elisa Deroche which was put up at 61, rue de la Verrerie (in the 4th district).

She was born there on August 22nd, 1886.  It is very difficult to obtain information about her. Since then, by chance, when visiting the "Musée du Tau" in Rheims, I found a display about her.

Elisa Deroche was an actress whose stage name was Raymonde de Laroche. In March 1910 at Mourmelon (in the Marne, East of Paris), she was the first lady in the world to pass her pilote's licence. It is true that aviation had appeared in the preceding decade, men were not thousand of years ahead.

In 1914, she wanted to join the Air Force but she was refused.

The display of the museum in Rheims shows a nice portrait of her :

We can also see a model of the aircraft she piloted in Rheims in 1909 :

There is also a postcard showing "Mme Deroche" behind the wheel of an aircraft in 1909 :

This information completes what we can know about this lady who showed that the prejudices against women were without fondation.

The decision of putting up this sign was taken by the District Council of the 4th arrondissement on September 19th, 2006 and it was applied three years later in February 2009 but few people were informed about that which I criticized.

This post is the translation into English of two posts published on March 2nd, 2009 and August,23rd, 2009.