The Auld Alliance (1295-1560) was a formal treaty between France and Scotland; Mary Queen of Scots lived in Paris 1548-1561 and married at Notre-Dame; the Garde Écossaise protected French kings starting in 1418, was disbanded in 1791, re-established in 1814, and finally disbanded in 1830; and the Collège des Écossais was opened in 1325 and confirmed in 1326 in Paris, with the current building dating from 1662-1665.
From the legendary Shakespeare and Company to hidden literary gems in the Latin Quarter and Saint-Germain-des-Prés, discover the bookshops that make Paris a reader’s paradise.
From natural wine caves in the 11th to classic bistros à vin in Saint-Germain, discover where Parisians go for serious wine, small plates, and conversation.
Tucked into a 17th-century mansion in the Marais, the Musée Picasso houses the world’s largest collection of the artist’s work. Here’s how to make the most of your visit to this intimate, essential Paris museum.
Less than 90 minutes from Paris, the UNESCO-listed town of Provins offers ramparts, underground tunnels, and a journey back to the Middle Ages without the crowds of other day trips.
Both Paris’s Pletzl (Marais) and New York’s Lower East Side were destinations for Eastern European Jewish immigration from the 1880s-1920s, with documented institutional development in both communities, though the U.S. received over 2 million immigrants compared to France’s approximately 100,000.
Perched atop Montmartre’s highest point, the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur offers sweeping Paris views, stunning Byzantine architecture, and a serene escape from the city below. Here’s everything you need to know before you visit.
Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is located approximately 55 kilometers southeast of Paris in Maincy, and its 1661 inauguration directly led to Louis XIV creating Versailles using the same architects, a well-documented historical fact.
The Île de la Cité is where Paris began over 2,000 years ago. This island in the Seine holds some of the city’s most beautiful monuments, hidden squares, and centuries of history in just 22 acres.
The Prix de Rome (1663-1968) sent French artists to study at the French Academy in Rome, housed in Villa Medici in Lazio since 1803—a verifiable historical program that created sustained cultural exchange between Paris and Rome.
