![Elysée Palace, Paris 2005](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Elys%C3%A9e_Palace%2C_Paris_2005.jpg)
As the capital of France,
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
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. The
President of France
The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency i ...
resides at the
Élysée Palace
The Élysée Palace (french: Palais de l'Élysée; ) is the official residence of the President of the French Republic. Completed in 1722, it was built for nobleman and army officer Louis Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, who had been appointed Gover ...
in the
8th arrondissement, while the
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
's seat is at the
Hôtel Matignon
The Hôtel Matignon or Hôtel de Matignon () is the official residence of the Prime Minister of France. It is located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, at 57 Rue de Varenne. "Matignon" is often used as a metonym for the governmental action o ...
in the
7th arrondissement. Government ministries are located in various parts of the city; many are located in the 7th arrondissement, near the Matignon.
The two houses of the French Parliament are located on the
left bank
In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows.
In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...
. The upper house, the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, meets in the
Palais du Luxembourg
The Luxembourg Palace (french: Palais du Luxembourg, ) is at 15 Rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally built (1615–1645) to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the royal residence of the ...
in the
6th arrondissement
The 6th arrondissement of Paris (''VIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le sixième''.
The arrondissement, called Luxembourg in ...
, while the more important lower house, the
Assemblée Nationale
The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...
, meets in the
Palais Bourbon
The Palais Bourbon () is the meeting place of the National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French Parliament. It is located in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, on the ''Rive Gauche'' of the Seine, across from the Place de la Concor ...
in the 7th arrondissement. The
President of the Senate
President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies.
The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for e ...
, the second-highest public official in France after the President of the Republic, resides in the
Petit Luxembourg
The Petit Luxembourg (; "Little Luxembourg") is a French ''hôtel particulier'' and the residence of the president of the French Senate. It is located at 17–17 bis, rue de Vaugirard, just west of the Luxembourg Palace, which serves as the seat ...
, a small annex to the
Palais du Luxembourg
The Luxembourg Palace (french: Palais du Luxembourg, ) is at 15 Rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. It was originally built (1615–1645) to the designs of the French architect Salomon de Brosse to be the royal residence of the ...
.
France's highest courts are located in Paris. The
Court of Cassation
A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...
, the highest court in the judicial order, which reviews criminal and civil cases, is located in the
Palais de Justice on the ''
Île de la Cité
Île de la Cité (; English: City Island) is an island in the river Seine in the center of Paris. In the 4th century, it was the site of the fortress of the Roman governor. In 508, Clovis I, the first King of the Franks, established his palace ...
'', 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
The Palais-Royal () is a former royal palace located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. The screened entrance court faces the Place du Palais-Royal, opposite the Louvre. Originally called the Palais-Cardinal, it was built for Cardinal R ...
in the
1st arrondissement. The
Constitutional Council Constitutional Council might refer to:
* Constitutional Council (Chad)
* Constitutional Council (France)
* Constitutional Council (Ivory Coast)
* Constitutional Council (Sri Lanka)
* Constitutional Council (Cambodia)
* Constitutional Council (Kaz ...
, an advisory body with ultimate authority on the constitutionality of laws and government decrees, also meets in the Montpensier wing of the
Palais Royal
The Palais-Royal () is a former royal palace located in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. The screened entrance court faces the Place du Palais-Royal, opposite the Louvre. Originally called the Palais-Cardinal, it was built for Cardinal R ...
.
Law no. 2017-257 of February 28, 2017, relating to the status of Paris and metropolitan planning provides in particular for the establishment on January 1, 2019, of a community with a special status bringing together a municipality and a department called "City of Paris", to which additional powers from the police headquarters are transferred.
City government
![Par Arr](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Par_Arr.svg)
Paris has been a ''
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
'' (municipality) since 1834 (and also briefly between 1790 and 1795). At the 1790 division (during the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
) of France into communes, and again in 1834, Paris was a city only half its modern size, composed of 12 arrondissements, but, in 1860, it annexed bordering communes, some entirely, to create the new administrative map of twenty ''
municipal arrondissements'' the city still has today. These municipal subdivisions describe a clockwise spiral outward from its most central, the 1st arrondissement. The arrondissements are as follows (see map for location):
*
1st arrondissement of Paris
The 1st arrondissement of Paris (''Ier arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''le premier'' (the first). It is governed locally toge ...
*
2nd arrondissement of Paris
The 2nd arrondissement of Paris (''IIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''deuxième'' (second/the second). It is governed locally ...
*
3rd arrondissement of Paris
The 3rd arrondissement of Paris (''IIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements (districts) of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as the ''"troisième"'' meaning "third" in Fr ...
*
4th arrondissement of Paris
The 4th arrondissement of Paris (''IVe arrondissement'') is one of the twenty arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''quatrième''. Along with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd arrondissement ...
*
5th arrondissement of Paris
The 5th arrondissement of Paris (''Ve arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''le cinquième''.
The arrondissement, als ...
*
6th arrondissement of Paris
The 6th arrondissement of Paris (''VIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le sixième''.
The arrondissement, called Luxembourg in ...
*
7th arrondissement of Paris
The 7th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''le septième''.
The arrondissement, ca ...
*
8th arrondissement of Paris
The 8th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, the arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''le huitième'' ("the eighth").
The arrondissement, ...
*
9th arrondissement of Paris
The 9th arrondissement of Paris (''IXe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.
In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as the neuvième (; "ninth").
The arrondissement, called Opéra, is loc ...
*
10th arrondissement of Paris
The 10th arrondissement of Paris (''Xe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dixième'' ("10th arrondissement of Paris" = "dixième arrondisseme ...
*
11th arrondissement of Paris
The 11th arrondissement of Paris (''XIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''onzième''.
The arrondissement, called Popincourt, is situated on ...
*
12th arrondissement of Paris The 12th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le douzième'' ("the twelfth"). Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, it is ...
*
13th arrondissement of Paris
The 13th arrondissement of Paris (''XIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''treizième''.
The arrondissement, called Gobelins, is situated ...
*
14th arrondissement of Paris
The 14th arrondissement of Paris ( ), officially named ''arrondissement de l'Observatoire'' (; meaning "arrondissement of the Observatory", after the Paris Observatory), is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. It is situa ...
*
15th arrondissement of Paris
15 (fifteen) is the natural number following 14 and preceding 16.
Mathematics
15 is:
* A composite number, and the sixth semiprime; its proper divisors being , and .
* A deficient number, a smooth number, a lucky number, a pernicious nu ...
*
16th arrondissement of Paris
The 16th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''seizième''.
The arrondissement includes part of the Arc de T ...
*
17th arrondissement of Paris
The 17th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le dix-septième'' (; "the seventeenth").
The arrondissement, known as Batignoll ...
*
18th arrondissement of Paris
The 18th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dix-huitième''.
The arrondissement, known as Butte-Montmartr ...
*
19th arrondissement of Paris
The 19th arrondissement of Paris (''XIXe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dix-neuvième''.
The arrondissement, known as Butte-Chaumont, ...
*
20th arrondissement of Paris
The 20th arrondissement of Paris (known in French as the ''XXe arrondissement de Paris'' or simply as "''le vingtième''") is the last of the consecutively numbered Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. Also kno ...
In 1790, Paris became the ''
préfecture
In France, a prefecture (french: préfecture) may be:
* the ''chef-lieu de département'', the commune in which the administration of a department is located;
* the ''chef-lieu de région'', the commune in which the administration of a region is l ...
'' (seat) of the
Seine
)
, mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur
, mouth_coordinates =
, mouth_elevation =
, progression =
, river_system = Seine basin
, basin_size =
, tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle
, tributarie ...
''
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...
'', which covered much of the Paris region. In 1968, it was split into four smaller ones: The city of Paris became a distinct ''département'' of its own, retaining the Seine's departmental number of 75 (originating from the Seine ''départements position in France's alphabetical list), while three new ''départements'' of
Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine (; ) is a Departments of France, département in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region, Northern France. It covers Paris's western inner Banlieue, suburbs. It is bordered by Paris, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne to the e ...
,
Seine-Saint-Denis
() is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as ' or ' ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93. Its prefecture is Bobigny ...
and
Val-de-Marne
Val-de-Marne (, "Vale of the Marne") is a department of France located in the ÃŽle-de-France region. Named after the river Marne, it is situated in the Grand Paris metropolis to the southeast of the City of Paris. In 2019, Val-de-Marne had a pop ...
were created and given the numbers 92, 93, and 94, respectively. The result of this division is that today Paris's limits as a ''département'' are exactly those of its limits as a ''commune'', a situation unique in France.
Municipal offices
Each of Paris's twenty arrondissements has its own town hall and a directly elected council (''conseil d'arrondissement''), which, in turn, elects an arrondissement mayor. A selection of members from each arrondissement council form the
Council of Paris
The Council of Paris ( French: ''Conseil de Paris'') is the deliberative body responsible for governing Paris, the capital of France. It possesses both the powers of a municipal council (''conseil municipal'') and those of a departmental counc ...
(''conseil de Paris''), which, in turn, elects the
mayor of Paris
The Mayor of Paris (french: Maire de Paris) is the chief executive of Paris, the capital and largest city in France. The officeholder is responsible for the administration and management of the city, submits proposals and recommendations to the C ...
.
In
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
times, Paris was governed by a merchant-elected municipality whose head was the
provost of the merchants. In addition to regulating city commerce, the provost of the merchants was responsible for some civic duties such as the guarding of city walls and the cleaning of city streets. The creation of the
provost of Paris
The Mayor of Paris (french: Maire de Paris) is the chief executive of Paris, the capital and largest city in France. The officeholder is responsible for the administration and management of the city, submits proposals and recommendations to the C ...
from the 13th century diminished the merchant Provost's responsibilities and powers considerably.
A direct representative of the king, in a role resembling somewhat the ''préfet'' of later years, the Provost (''prévôt'') of Paris oversaw the application and execution of law and order in the city and its surrounding ''prévôté'' (county) from his office in the
Grand Châtelet The Grand Châtelet was a stronghold in Ancien Régime Paris, on the right bank of the Seine, on the site of what is now the Place du Châtelet; it contained a court and police headquarters and a number of prisons.
The original building on the s ...
. Many functions from both provost offices were transferred to the office of the crown-appointed
lieutenant general of police upon its creation in 1667. For centuries, the ''prévôt'' and magistrates of the Châtelet clashed with the administrators of the
Hôtel de Ville over jurisdiction; the latter notably included the ''quartiniers'', each of whom was responsible for one of the sixteen ''
quartiers'' (which were in turn divided into four ''cinquantaines'', each with its ''cinquantainier'', and those in turn were divided into ''dizaines'', administered by ''dizainiers''):
All of these men were in principle elected by the local bourgeois. At any one time, therefore, 336 men had shared administrative responsibility for street cleaning and maintenance, for public health, law, and order. The ''quartiniers'' maintained the official lists of "bourgeois de Paris", ran local elections, could impose fines for breaches of the bylaws, and had a role in tax assessment. They met at the Hôtel de Ville to confer on matters of citywide importance and each year selected eight of "the most notable inhabitants of the quarter", who together with other local officials would elect the city council.
The last of the
Prévôt des marchands of Paris was assassinated on the afternoon of the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
Storming of the Bastille
The Storming of the Bastille (french: Prise de la Bastille ) occurred in Paris, France, on 14 July 1789, when revolutionary insurgents stormed and seized control of the medieval armoury, fortress, and political prison known as the Bastille. At t ...
on 14 July 1789. Paris became an official "commune" from the creation of the administrative division on 14 December the same year, and its provisional "Paris commune" revolutionary municipality was replaced with the city's first municipal constitution and government from 9 October 1790. Through the turmoil of the 1794
Thermidorian Reaction
The Thermidorian Reaction (french: Réaction thermidorienne or ''Convention thermidorienne'', "Thermidorian Convention") is the common term, in the historiography of the French Revolution, for the period between the ousting of Maximilien Robespie ...
, it became apparent that revolutionary Paris's political independence was a threat to any governing power: The office of mayor was abolished the same year, and its municipal council one year later.
![Hotel de Ville Paris Wikimedia Commons](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Hotel_de_Ville_Paris_Wikimedia_Commons.jpg)
Although the municipal council was recreated in 1834, for most of the 19th and 20th centuries, Paris — along with the larger Seine ''département'' of which it was a centre — was under the direct control of the state-appointed
prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
''(préfet)'' of the Seine department (until 1968) and the prefect of Paris (1968-1977). This left the largest city in the nation as the only one without a mayor, meaning that Paris had less autonomy than the smallest village. The state-appointed
Prefect of Police In France, a Prefecture of Police (french: Préfecture de police), headed by the Prefect of Police (''Préfet de police''), is an agency of the Government of France under the administration of the Ministry of the Interior. Part of the National Poli ...
was in charge of police in the same jurisdiction. With the exception of a few brief occasions, the city did not have a mayor from 1794 to 1977, and the Paris Prefecture of Police is still under state control today.
Despite its dual existence as ''commune'' and ''département'', Paris has a single council to govern both; the Council of Paris, presided over by the mayor of Paris, meets as either as a municipal council (''conseil municipal'') or a departmental council (''conseil général''), depending on the issue to be debated. Paris's modern administrative organisation still retains some traces of the former Seine ''département'' jurisdiction. The Prefecture of Police (also directing Paris's fire brigades), for example, has still a jurisdiction extending to Paris's ''petite couronne'' of bordering three ''départements'' for some operations such as fire protection or rescue operations, and is still directed by France's national government. Paris has no municipal police force,
although it does have its own brigade of traffic wardens.
Capital of the Île-de-France ''région''
![ile-de-France jms](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Ile-de-France_jms.png)
As part of a 1961 nationwide administrative effort to consolidate regional economies, Paris as a ''département'' became the capital of the new ''région'' of the District of Paris, renamed the
ÃŽle-de-France
, timezone1 = CET
, utc_offset1 = +01:00
, timezone1_DST = CEST
, utc_offset1_DST = +02:00
, blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product
, blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st
, bla ...
''région'' in 1976.
It encompasses the Paris ''département'' and its seven closest ''départements''. Its regional council members, since 1986, have been chosen by direct elections.
The prefect of the Paris ''département'' (who served as the prefect of the Seine ''département'' before 1968) is also prefect of the Île-de-France ''région'', although the office lost much of its power following the creation of the office of mayor of Paris in 1977.
Intercommunality
Few of the above changes have taken into account Paris's existence as an
agglomeration
Agglomeration may refer to:
* Urban agglomeration, in standard English
* Megalopolis, in Chinese English, as defined in China's ''Standard for basic terminology of urban planning'' (GB/T 50280—98). Also known as "city cluster".
* Economies of agg ...
. Unlike in most of France's major urban areas such as
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
and
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
, there is no
intercommunal entity in the Paris urban area, no intercommunal council treating the problems of the region's dense urban core as a whole; Paris's alienation of its suburbs is indeed a problem today, and one of the main causes of civil unrest such as the suburban riots in 2005.
A direct result of these events are propositions for a more efficient metropolitan structure to cover the city of Paris and some of the suburbs, ranging from a socialist idea of a loose "metropolitan conference" (''conférence métropolitaine'') to the right-wing idea of a more integrated ''Grand Paris'' ("Greater Paris").
International relations
Paris and its region host the headquarters of many international organisations including
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
, the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries ...
, the
International Chamber of Commerce
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC; French: ''Chambre de commerce internationale'') is the largest, most representative business organization in the world. Its over 45 million members in over 100 countries have interests spanning every s ...
, the
Paris Club
The Paris Club (french: Club de Paris) is a group of officials from major creditor countries whose role is to find co-ordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties experienced by debtor countries. As debtor countries undertake ...
, the
European Space Agency
, owners =
, headquarters = Paris, ÃŽle-de-France, France
, coordinates =
, spaceport = Guiana Space Centre
, seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png
, seal_size = 130px
, image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...
, the
International Energy Agency
The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organisation, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the entire global energy sector, with a recent focus on curbing carb ...
, the
Organisation internationale de la Francophonie
The (OIF; sometimes shortened to the Francophonie, french: La Francophonie , but also called International Organisation of in English-language context) is an international organization representing countries and regions where French is a ...
, the
European Union Institute for Security Studies
The European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) is a Paris-based agency of the European Union (EU) within the realm of Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The EUISS is an autonomous agency with full intellectual freedom and rese ...
, the
International Bureau of Weights and Measures
The International Bureau of Weights and Measures (french: Bureau international des poids et mesures, BIPM) is an intergovernmental organisation, through which its 59 member-states act together on measurement standards in four areas: chemistry, ...
, the
International Exhibition Bureau and the
International Federation for Human Rights
The International Federation for Human Rights (french: Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'homme; FIDH) is a non-governmental federation for human rights organizations. Founded in 1922, FIDH is the third oldest international h ...
. Paris is today one of the world's leading business and cultural centres and its influences in politics, education, entertainment, media, science, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major
global cities.
[According to]
''Globalization and World Cities''
study by the University of Loughborough, 2010
''Global Cities Index''
by A.T. Kearney, 2012
''Global Power City Index''
by the Mori Memorial Foundation, 2011
''The Wealth Report''
by Knight Frank for CitiBank, 2012
References
{{Authority control
*