Discover the Roman Arenas of Paris

Discover the Roman Arenas of Paris

The arenas of Lutetia by LPLT. Sourced from Wikipedia

Paris is a very old city. It is possible to find in it monuments that are almost 2,000 years old like the Arenas of Lutetia.

Hidden in a square behind the five-story buildings of the Rue Monge, they are found only by the people looking for it. Yet, it was one of the biggest arenas of Gaul, the ancient France, and the pride of the region.

Let me tell you its story.

Why are there Roman arenas in Paris in the first place?

In 52 BC, the armies of Jules Cesar stormed the stronghold of a tribe called the Parisii. They belong to the Celtic civilization, in a large territory similar to the France of today that was called Gaul by the Romans. The victorious Romans rebuilt another city that they called Lutetia and where the Parisii lived side to side with the Romans settlers.

This city remains small even if it was prosperous: there was around 10 000 inhabitants in the second century AD. Like any city in the Roman Empire, the local elites paid to build impressive monuments. It was part of their political campaigns to be elected in the city council.

This competition within the local elites and between Lutetia and the others cities in Gaul explain for the number of big monuments in Lutetia. The Parisii could enjoy a big forum, the arenas but also a theater and several baths. The biggest bath, today called the baths of Cluny, are still visible today. They made the Roman domination visible as these monuments were very similar in all parts of the Empire.

The number and the size of these monuments was completely disproportionate to the number of inhabitants. Historians estimate that it was possible to fit 17 000 spectators in the arenas. It is almost double the number of inhabitants and as many as several venues in modern Paris, like the Allianz Arena in Bercy.

The arenas, situated just outside of the city, could welcome the inhabitants of the whole region. It was the biggest in Gaul after the ones of Arles and Nimes.

Inside you had several kinds of shows: theater plays, mime shows, fights between gladiators, fights between animals and executions of prisoners by gladiators. It is also possible that, like in Rome, the arenas were flooded to organize reconstitutions of sea battles.

What were the Roman arenas like at the peak of their splendour?

Built in the first century AD, the shape of the building is a compromise between the elliptical amphitheaters and the semi-circular theaters.

Model of the arenas of Lutece by Carole Raddato. Sourced from Wikipedia

The spectators were protected by a parapet because of the possible presence of wild animals on stage. The dimensions were 100m x 130m.

There were 2 entrances on the north and the south. The monument was richly adorned with painted decorations and statues.

The bleachers were constituted of big blocks of stone. The lower ones are still visible today. The names or the initials of some dignitaries were written in some of them and they could enjoy the comfort of a cushion.

The bleachers were thus separated into two parts: the cavea prima for the rich, called the patricians, and the cavea ultima for the poors, called the plebeians.

The slaves and the prostitutes could come as well, as the shows were free, paid by wealthy elites. When there was a theater play, the seats of the rich were put in the middle of the arenas for them to be as close as possible from the stage.

In summer, the spectators were protected from the sun by a piece of cloth suspended on the ceiling. This expensive equipment was another sign of luxury, illustrating the richness of the city and the richness of the man who paid for it.

On the stage itself, you had four cages carved on the stone called the carceres that were used to keep the wild animals before they were unleashed.

Leaning on the eastern wall, you had a stage used by the actors when there was a play. They had semi-circular alcoves situated where today you have the benches of the square.

In the middle of the arenas there was a statue of the emperor. It marked the loyalty of Lutetia to Rome: the emperor himself was worshipped in every city of the Empire as a sign of allegiance. The Parisii had set up a smart system where the head of the emperor could be unscrewed to be replaced every time the emperor changed.

Among all the different kind of shows presented, the gladiators fights were by far the most popular. Let’s focus on them since we have some good documentation left by Roman authors.

Who were the gladiators that fought in the Roman arenas?

We often assume that we know much about the gladiators because of Hollywood movies. The reality is that these movies often distorted history and perpetuated fake or partially fake ideas. Let’s examine some of these misconceptions.

First, it was not that common to have a gladiator sentenced to death. The gladiators were athletes, trained for years, who could be very profitable to their masters, the lanista. He wanted to preserve them even if he was paid in case of an unexpected death.

What was expected by the spectators was a show, a beautiful and technical fight, similar to a sport. Bravado and skills were expected. Of course, blows were real and could result in the death of one of the fighters. The gladiator who refused to take risks and who gave a bad show was the more in danger to be executed.

For those who wanted executions, or deadly fights, they existed, in the same arenas, often during the same show, but the gladiator’s fights were not massacres. It is estimated that a gladiator, when entering the arenas, had one chance out of five to die in the fight.

The fights could be ended when a gladiator asked the referee to stop by raising his finger. The organizer of the games, called the editor, decided to spare his life or not. The reaction of the crowd was important in the decision but they were not as bloodthirsty as one could have expected.

The editors condemned the gladiator by turning his thumb, even though we are not sure exactly what the gesture looked like.

Gladiators shown in a mosaic in Zliten in Libya

Another challenge to conventional wisdom: many gladiators, maybe around one third, were volunteers. Why does anybody would like to have such a dangerous life?

Because by becoming a gladiator, one could hope to became a superstar and a sex symbol. He would be housed and fed and the best fighters received gifts, sometimes by the emperor himself.

If you compare it to the miserable life led by many of the inhabitants of the Roman Empire, you can understand that some were ready to take the risk!

You had also prisoners of wars that were asked to choose between the gladiatura and death, or working in the mines. Some slaves found guilty of crimes could also be sentenced to go to the arenas. For the Roman morality, the gladiators had to belong to the lower social classes, even the volunteers.

Not all the gladiators were men. We have the traces of a few women gladiators, or gladiatrix. They would fight each other, or in some cases were pitted against dwarves or wild animals. It is assumed that the Romans would find entertaining and exotic to have a woman on the stage.

The emperor Septimius Severus decided to forbid women gladiators in 200 AD, probably because these fights went against the Roman morality and conception of womanhood.

One last surprise: the gladiators had a vegetarian diet! In the best school of gladiators, their severe preparation corresponded to what experts of that time considered the best.

Why were the Roman arenas lost?

Starting from the third century AD, the Roman Empire underwent a decline and was no longer able to guarantee the safety of its borders.

Paris became the center of a military camp, situated on what is today the Palais de Justice. From there, troops could be sent quickly to fight Germanic tribes such as the Franks and the Alamans.

As a consequence of this new danger, the inhabitants of Lutetia concentrated on the main island, known today as the Ile de la Cité. The island was easier to defend than the slopes of the left bank.

Some ramparts were built, using stones from the old public buildings such as the forum and the arenas. The shows, very expensive and condemned by the Christian authorities, seem to have stopped. These remparts are still visible when you go down to visit the archeological crypt of Notre-Dame.

Roman ruins in the archeological crypt of Notre-Dame

These damaged arenas were used one more time in the early Middle Ages. A Frank king, Chilperic, renovated them and organized some shows in 576. The arenas were then abandoned for centuries.

The site was completely transformed by the building of the city walls by Philippe Auguste around 1200. Doves were created and the displaced soil covered the arenas. The exact location was forgotten even if the memory of these arenas was not completely lost.

How were the Roman arenas rediscovered?

This location was revealed during the big transformation of Paris led by Haussmann in the middle of the nineteenth century. A wide avenue was created, the Rue Monge, touching the site of the arenas. The archeologist Theodore Vacquer was the first to excavate some parts of them in 1860.

However, the tramway company, the Société des Omnibus, owned the land and wanted to transform it into a tram depot. At this time, the patrimony was not sacralized as it is today and the destruction of these arenas did not perturb the company.

The arenas were saved by Victor Hugo. The novelist, author of Les Misérables and the Hunchback of Notre-Dame, was extremely famous and popular.

Victor Hugo by Nadar. Sourced from Wikipedia

In 1883 he wrote a letter to the city council of Paris, urging them to save the arenas:

“It is unthinkable that Paris, the city of the future, dares to destroy the proof that it was also the city of the past. The past leads to the future. The Arenas are the ancient signs of this great city. They are irreplaceable. A Council that seeks to destroy them does so at its own peril …”

After this intervention, the site was saved and the monument classified. Nevertheless, they had to wait before the dismantling of the tramway depot in 1918 to restore another part of the arenas. The archeologist Louis Capitan who led it gave his name to the square that includes the arenas.

Only the first tiers were restored and not on the total surface of the building of the Antiquity. For this to be possible, some buildings of the Rue Monge would have to be destroyed and the itineray of the street modified.

Today, the square is quiet and very appreciable for a picnic or to rest after a walk in the Latin Quarter. You will often find Parisians playing the Pétanque, a metal ball game, or football.

Perhaps you can find a seat in the bleacher, close your eyes and imagine the shows of before !