The history of Paris begins with the Parisii, a Celtic people who settled along the Seine and probably had a settlement on the river island now known as the Île de la Cité. The Romans conquered the region in the 1st century BCE and built a city called Lutetia, mainly on the Left Bank, with a forum, baths and an amphitheater. It was a modest provincial town until Christianity and the weakening of Roman rule changed the region. Clovis, king of the Franks, made it his capital in the early 6th century, and it later grew into the political and cultural center of the French kingdom. The Latin name Lutetia gave way to Paris, which comes from the name of the Parisii.
Before and after
- 4th century BCEElements
- from 4th century BCE to 5th centuryXiongnu
- 4th century BCEPublication of Arthashastra
- from 4th century BCE to 4th centuryFounding of Library of Alexandria
- 4th century BCEOrigins of Paris
- 300 BCEFounding of Chankillo
- from 300 BCE to 1279Chola dynasty
- from 300 BCE to 250 CEYayoi period
- from 299 BCE to 580 CEKingdom of Iberia
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- from c. 2,601 BCE to 1,901 BCEThe Indus Valley cities reach maturity
- c. 1,051 BCEThe Phoenician alphabet spreads
- from 351 BCE to 1494Construction of Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
- from 323 BCE to 30 BCEHellenistic period
- 323 BCEConstruction of Temple of Ephesian Artemis
- 248 BCEConstruction of Terracotta Army
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires.