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Paris is the capital and largest city of France. It is also the capital of the Île-de-France région (also known as Paris Region) that, encompassing Paris and 
its suburbs, represents France's most dynamic centre of economic activity. Paris is a leading global cultural, business and political centre and is renowned for its defining neo-classical architecture as well as its role as a major international influence in fashion, gastronomy and the arts. It is widely regarded as one of the world's major global cities. Dubbed "the City of Lights" (la Ville Lumière) since the 19th century, Paris has a reputation as a "romantic" city.
Paris is situated on the banks of the river Seine in north-central France. The city hosts many museums and galleries, has an active nightlife, and is the most visited city in the world, with more than 30 million visitors per year. The most recognisable symbol of Paris is the 324 metre (1,063 ft) Eiffel Tower on the banks of the Seine.
The City of Paris had an estimated mid-2004 population of 2,144,700. The Paris urban area, extending well beyond the city boundaries, has today an estimated population of 9.9 million . The Paris metropolitan area (including satellite towns) stood at 11.5 million in 1999[8]. Paris and the Île-de-France région produce more than a quarter of France's wealth, with a GDP of nearly €450 billion (US$506.7 billion) in 2003.With La Défense, one of the largest business districts in Europe, Paris also hosts the head offices of almost half of all French companies, as well as the offices of major international firms and the headquarters of many international organisations such as UNESCO, the OECD, the ICC, or the informal Paris Club.
Paris is located on a north-bending arc of the river Seine and includes two inhabited islands, the Île Saint-Louis and the larger Île de la Cité which is the heart and origin of the city. Paris has several prominent hills, of which the highest is Montmartre at 130 metres (426½ ft) above sea level.
The city of Paris covers 105.397 square kilometres (40.69 mi²), 86.928 square kilometres (33.56 mi²) of land, excluding the outlying parks of Bois de Boulogne and Bois de Vincennes.
Paris' administrative borders have remained largely unchanged since 1860: this last annexation, in addition to incorporating outlying suburbs between the city and its then ring of fortifications, was also the creation of Paris ' present 20 arrondissements; arrondissements 12 to 20 together represent the land incoporated into the city then. From its 1860 78 km² (30.1 mi²), these limits changed marginally to 86.9 km² in the 1920's, and 1929 was the year the Bois de Boulogne and Bois de Vincennes forest parks were officially added to the City of Paris.
Champs-Élysées is a seventeenth century garden-promenade turned avenue connecting the Concorde and Arc de Triomphe. It is one of the many tourist attractions and a major shopping street of Paris. This avenue has been called "la plus belle avenue du monde" ("the most beautiful avenue in the world").
Avenue Montaigne is, like the two previous districts, home to luxury brand labels such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton (LVMH), Dior and Givenchy.
Place de la Concorde is at the foot of the Champs-Élysées, built as the "Place Louis XV", site of the infamous guillotine. The Egyptian obelisk it holds today can be considered Paris's "oldest monument". Nearby Place Vendome is famous for its fashionable and deluxe hotels, such as Hotel Ritz. Many famous fashion designers have had their salons in the square.
Faubourg Saint-Honoré is one of Paris' high-fashion districts, home to labels such as Hermès and Christian Lacroix.
L'Opéra is the area around the Opéra Garnier is a home to the capital's densest concentration of both department stores and offices. A few examples are the Printemps and Galeries Lafayette grands magasins (department stores), and the Paris headquarters of financial giants such as Crédit Lyonnais and American Express.
Montmartre is a historic area on the Butte, home to the Basilica of the Sacré Coeur. Montmartre has always had a history with artist and has many studios and cafés of many great artists in that area.
Les Halles was formerly Paris' central meat and produce market, since the late 1970s a major shopping center around an important metro connection station. The past Les Halles was destroyed in 1971 and replaced by the current day Forum des Halles.
Le Marais is trendy Right Bank district. With large gay and Jewish populations it is a very culturally open place.
Place de la Bastille being one of the most historic districts, being a location of an essential event of not only Paris, but the whole country of France. Because of its historical value the square is often used for political demonstrations, including the massive anti-CPE demonstration of March 28, 2006.
Quartier Latin is a twelfth century scholastic centre formerly stretching between the Left Bank's Place Maubert and the Sorbonne campus. It is known for its lively atmosphere and many bistros. With various higher education establishments, such as the École Normale Supérieure, the École des Mines and the Jussieu university campus make it a major educational center in Paris, which also contributes to its atmosphere.
Montparnasse is a historic Left Bank area famous for artists studios, music halls, and café life. The large Montparnasse - Bienvenüe métro station and the lone Tour Montparnasse skyscraper are located there.
Paris' suburban La Défense district is one of the largest business centres in the world, and a major destination for business tourism. Built at the western end of a westward extension of Paris' historical axis from the Champs-Élysées, La Défense consists mainly of business highrises and with 3.5 million m² of offices, it is today the largest CBD in Europe.
The Industrial Revolution, the French Second Empire, and the Belle Époque brought Paris the greatest development in its history. From the 1840s, rail transport allowed an unprecedented flow of migrants into Paris attracted by employment in the new industries in the suburbs. The city underwent a massive renovation under Napoleon III and his préfet Haussmann, who leveled entire districts of narrow-winding medieval streets to create the network of wide avenues and neo-classical façades of modern Paris.
Cholera epidemics in 1832 and 1849 affected the population of Paris (the 1832 epidemic alone claimed 20,000 of the then population of 650,000.[13] Paris also suffered greatly from the siege ending the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), and the ensuing civil war Commune of Paris (1871) killed thousands and sent many of Paris's administrative centres (and city archives) up in flames.
Paris recovered rapidly from these events to host the famous Universal Expositions of the late nineteenth century. The Eiffel Tower was built for the French Revolution centennial 1889 Universal Exposition, as a "temporary" display of architectural engineering prowess but remained the world's tallest building until 1930, and today is the city's best-known landmark. The first line of the Paris Métro opened for the 1900 Universal Exposition and was an attraction in itself for visitors from the world over. Paris's World's Fair years also consolidated its position in the tourist industry and as an attractive setting for international technology and trade shows.
During World War I, Paris was at the forefront of the war effort, having been spared a German invasion by the French and English victory at the First Battle of the Marne in 1914. In 1918-1919, it was the scene of Allied victory parades and peace negotiations. In the inter-war period Paris was famed for its cultural and artistic communities and its nightlife. The city became a melting pot of artists from around the world, from exiled Russian composer Stravinsky and Spanish painters Picasso and Dalí to American writer Hemingway.
In June 1940, five weeks after the start of the German attack on France, a partially-evacuated Paris fell to German occupation forces, who remained there until Free French troops belonging to the 2nd Armored Division of General Leclerc liberated the city in late August 1944. The city suffered almost no war damage partly due to the refusal of the German military commander, General von Choltitz, to carry out Hitler's direct order to destroy all monuments before evacuating the city.
In the post-war era, Paris experienced its largest development since the end of the Belle Époque in 1914. The suburbs began to expand considerably, with the construction of large social estates known as cités and the beginning of the business district La Défense. A comprehensive express subway network, the RER, was built to complement the Métro and serve the distant suburbs, while a network of freeways was developed in the suburbs, centered on the Périphérique expressway circling around the city.
Many inner suburbs of Paris (especially the eastern ones) have experienced de-industrialisation since the 1970s, and the once-thriving cités have gradually become ghettos for immigrants and oases of unemployment. The widening social gap between these disadvantaged suburbs and the wealthier suburbs (especially the western ones) have led to periodic unrest since the mid-1980s, such as the 2005 riots.
The City of Paris is much smaller than its urban growth. At present, the city's urban area (agglomeration) fills a ring of Paris' three neighbouring départements - also known as petite couronne ("small ring") - and extends into an "outer ring" of four grande couronne départements beyond. These eight départements together complete the Île-de-France région[citation needed].
The Paris agglomeration or urban area (unité urbaine) covers 2,723 km² (1,051.4 mi²) , or about 26 times larger than the city of Paris. Beyond this, the couronne peri-urbaine commuter belt region reaches well beyond the limits of the Île-de-France région, and combined with the Paris agglomeration, completes a metropolitan area (aire urbaine) covering 14,518 km² (5,605.5 mi²) [citation needed], or an area about 138 times that of Paris itself.
The Paris agglomeration has shown an steady rate of growth since the end of the late 16th-century French Wars of Religion, save brief setbacks during the French Revolution and World War II[citation needed]. Suburban development has accellerated in recent years, as with an estimated total of 11.4 million inhabitants for 2005, the Île-de-France région shows a rate of growth double that of the 1990s.
Paris metropolitan area is one of the most multi-cultural in Europe: at the 1999 census, 19.4% of its total population was born outside of metropolitan France. At the same census, 4.2% of the Paris metropolitan area's population were recent immigrants (i.e people who migrated to France between the 1990 and 1999 censuses) in their majority from mainland China and Africa.
The first wave of international migration to Paris started as early as in 1820 with the arrivals of German peasants fleeing the agricultural crisis in Germany. Several waves of immigration followed continuously until today : Italians and central European Jews during the 19th century; Russians after the revolution of 1917; colonial citizens during world war I and later; Poles between the two world wars; Spaniards, Portuguese and North Africans from the 1950's to the 1970's; North African Jews after the independence of those countries; Africans and Asians since then[citation needed]. The majority of these today are naturalised French without any distinction, in the name of the French Republic principle of equality among its citizens.
Although the Paris economy is largely dominated by services, it remains an important manufacturing powerhouse of Europe, especially in industrial sectors such as automobiles, aeronautics and high-technologies. Over recent decades, the local economy has moved towards high value-added activities, in particular business services.
The 1999 census indicated that of the 5,089,170 persons employed in the Paris metropolitan area, 16.5% worked in business services, 13.0% in commerce (retail and wholesale trade), 12.3% in manufacturing, 10.0% in public administrations and defense, 8.7% in health services, 8.2% in transportation and communications, 6.6% in education, and the remaining 24.7% in many other economic sectors. Among the manufacturing sector, the largest employers were the electronic and electrical industry (17.9% of the total manufacturing workforce in 1999) and the publishing and printing industry (14.0% of the total manufacturing workforce), with the remaining 68.1% of the manufacturing workforce distributed among many other industries. The tourism industry and tourist related services, employ 4.7% of the total workforce of Île-de-France (in 1999), and 7% of the total workforce of the city of Paris.
Paris is the capital of France, and as such is the seat of France's national government.
For the executive, the two chief officers each have their own official residences, which also serve as their offices. President of the Republic resides at the Elysée Palace in the Ier arrondissement, while the Prime Minister's seat is at the Hôtel Matignon in the VIIe arrondissement. Government ministries are located in various parts of the city - many are located in the VIIe, near the Matignon.
The two houses of the French Parliament are also located on the Left Bank. The upper house, the Senate, meets in the Palais du Luxembourg in the VIe arrondissement, while the more important lower house, the Assemblée Nationale, meets in the Palais Bourbon in the VIIe. The President of the Senate, the second highest public official in France after the President of the Republic, resides in the "Petit Luxembourg", a smaller palace annex to the Palais du Luxembourg.
France's highest courts are located in Paris. The Court of Cassation, the highest court in the judicial order, which tries most criminal and civil cases, is located in the Palais de Justice on the Ile de la Cité, while the Conseil d'État, which provides legal advice to the executive and acts as the highest court in the administrative order, judging litigation against public bodies, is located in the Palais Royal in the Ier.
The Constitutional Council, which is an advisory body which is the ultimate authority on the constitutionality of laws and government decrees, also meets in the Palais Royal.
Three of the most famous Parisian landmarks are the twelfth century cathedral Notre Dame de Paris on the Île de la Cité, the nineteenth century Eiffel Tower, and the Napoleonic Arc de Triomphe. The Eiffel Tower was a "temporary" construction by Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Universal Exposition but the tower was never dismantled and is now an enduring symbol of Paris. It is visible from many parts of the city as are the Tour Montparnasse skyscraper and the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on the Montmartre hill.
The Historical axis is a line of monuments, buildings and thoroughfares that run in a roughly straight line from the city centre westwards: the line of monuments begins with the Louvre and continues through the Tuileries Gardens, the Champs-Elysées and the Arc de Triomphe centred in the Place de l'Étoile circus. From the 1960's line was prolonged even further west to the La Défense business district dominated by square-shaped triumphal Grande Arche of its own; this area hosts most of Paris' tallest skyscrapers.
The Invalides museum is the burial place for many great French soldiers, including Napoleon, and the Panthéon church is where many of France's illustrious men and women are buried. The former Conciergerie prison held some prominent ancien régime members before their deaths during the French Revolution. Another symbol of the Revolution are the two Statues of Liberty located on the Île des Cygnes on the Seine and in the Luxembourg Garden. A larger version of the statues was sent as a gift from France to the United States in 1886 and now stands in New York City harbour.
The Palais Garnier built in the later Second Empire period, houses the Paris Opera and the Paris Opera Ballet, while the former palace of the Louvre now houses one of the most famous museums in the world. The Sorbonne is the most famous part of the University of Paris and is based in the centre of the Latin Quarter. Apart from Notre Dame de Paris, there are several other ecclesiastical masterpieces including the Gothic thirteenth century Sainte-Chapelle palace chapel and the Église de la Madeleine.
Paris had always been a destination for traders, students and those on religious pilgrimages, but its 'tourism' in the proper sense of the term began on a large scale only with the appearance of rail travel, namely from state organisation of France's rail network from 1848. One of Paris' first 'mass' attractions drawing international interest were, from 1855, the above-mentioned Expositions Universelles that would bring Paris many new monuments, namely the Eiffel tower from 1889. These, in addition to the Capital's 2nd Empire embellishments, did much to make the city itself the attraction it is today.
Paris' museums and monuments are by far its highest-esteemed attractions, and tourist interest has been nothing but a benefit to these; tourism has even motivated both city and State to create new ones. The city's most prized museum, the Louvre, sees over 6 million visitors a year. Paris' cathedrals are another main attraction: its Notre-Dame cathedral and Sacré-Coeur basilica receive 12 million and 8 million visitors respectively. The Eiffel tower, by far Paris' most famous monument, averages over 6 million visitors per year. Disneyland Resort Paris is a major tourist attraction not only for visitors to Paris, but to Europe as well, with 12.4 million visitors in 2004.
Many of Paris' once-popular local establishments have metamorphised into a parody of French culture, in a form catering to the tastes and expectations of tourist capital. The Moulin Rouge cabaret-dancehall, for example, is a staged dinner theatre spectacle, a dance display that was once but one aspect of the cabaret's former atmosphere. All of the establishment's former social or cultural elements, such as its ballrooms and gardens, are gone today. Much of Paris' hotel, restaurant and night entertainment trades have become heavily dependant on tourism, with results not always positive for Parisian culture.