Editing History of Paris (section)

==Roman Lutetia (52 BC – AD 486)==
{{main|Lutetia}}
[[File:Stèle de Mercure 02.JPG|thumb|upright=0.9|A Gallo-Roman stele of Mercury, from Lutetia. The people of Lutetia worshipped both Roman and Celtic gods. (Carnavalet Museum)]]
[[File:JulianusII-antioch(360-363)-CNG.jpg|thumb|right|[[Julian the Apostate]] was crowned [[Roman Emperor]] in the [[Thermes de Cluny]] in AD&nbsp;360. He tried unsuccessfully to roll back the Germanic invasions and the spread of Christianity.]]

The Romans built an entirely new city as a base for their soldiers and the Gallic auxiliaries intended to keep an eye on the rebellious province. The new city was called [[Lutetia]] (Lutèce) or "Lutetia Parisiorum" ("Lutèce of the Parisii"), probably from the Latin word ''luta'', meaning mud or swamp.<ref>''Dictionnaire historique de Paris'' (2013), p. 41</ref> The major part of the city was on the left bank of the Seine, which was higher and less prone to flood. It was laid out following the traditional Roman town design along a [[Cardo|north–south axis]].<ref name="Paris 2013 p. 412">''Dictionnaire historique de Paris'' (2013), p. 412.</ref>

The city was centered on the [[Roman Forum|forum]] atop the [[Montagne Sainte-Geneviève]]. The main building of the forum was one hundred meters long and contained a temple, a basilica used for civic functions and a square portico which covered shops. Nearby was an enormous [[amphitheatre]] built in the 1st century AD, which could seat ten to fifteen thousand spectators, though the population of the city was only six to eight thousand.<ref>Sarmant, Thierry, ''Histoire de Paris: Politique, urbanisme, civilisation'' (2012), p. 12.</ref> Fresh drinking water was supplied to the city by an [[Roman aqueduct|aqueduct]] sixteen kilometres long from the basin of [[Rungis]] and [[Wissous]]. The aqueduct also supplied water to the famous baths, or [[Thermes de Cluny]], built near the forum at the end of the 2nd century or beginning of the 3rd century. Under Roman rule, the town was thoroughly [[Romanization (cultural)|Romanised]] and grew considerably.

Besides the Roman architecture and city design, the newcomers imported Roman cuisine: modern excavations have found [[amphora]]e of Italian wine and olive oil, shellfish, and a popular Roman sauce called [[garum]].<ref name="Paris 2013 p. 412"/> Despite its commercial importance, Lutetia was only a medium-sized Roman city, considerably smaller than [[Lugdunum]] ([[Lyon]]) or [[Agedincum]] ([[Sens]]), which was the capital of the Roman province of [[Gallia Lugdunensis|Lugdunensis Quarta]], in which Lutetia was located.<ref name="Combeau, Yvan 2013 p. 11">Combeau, Yvan, ''Histoire de Paris'' (2013), p. 11.</ref>

Christianity was introduced into Paris in the middle of the 3rd century AD. According to tradition, it was brought by [[Saint Denis of Paris|Saint Denis]], the Bishop of the Parisii, who was beheaded on Mount Mercury when he refused to renounce his faith. According to the tradition, Saint Denis picked up his head and carried it to a secret Christian cemetery of Vicus Cattulliacus about six miles away. A different version of the legend says that a devout Christian woman, Catula, came at night to the site of the execution and took his remains to the cemetery. The hill where he was executed, Mount Mercury, later became the Mountain of Martyrs ("Mons Martyrum"), eventually [[Montmartre]].<ref>Schmidt, Joël, ''Lutèce: Paris, des origines à Clovis'' (2009), pp. 210–211.</ref> A church was built on the site of the grave of St. Denis, which later became the [[Basilica of Saint-Denis]]. By the 4th century, the city had its first recognized bishop, Victorinus (346). By 392, it had a cathedral.<ref name="Sarmant, Thierry 2012 p. 16-18">Sarmant, Thierry, ''Histoire de Paris: Politique, urbanisme, civilisation'' (2012), pp. 16–18.</ref>

Late in the 3rd century AD, the [[Migration Period|invasion of Germanic tribes]], beginning with the [[Alamans]] in 275, caused many of the residents of the [[Rive Gauche|Left Bank]] to leave that part of the city and move to the safety of the Île de la Cité. Many of the monuments on the Left Bank were abandoned, and the stones used to build a wall around the Île de la Cité, the first [[City walls of Paris|city wall of Paris]]. A new basilica and baths were built on the island; their ruins were found beneath the square in front of the cathedral of Notre Dame.<ref>Sarmant, Thierry, ''Histoire de Paris: Politique, urbanisme, civilisation'' (2012), p. 14.</ref> Beginning in 305, the name Lutetia was replaced on milestones by Civitas Parisiorum, or "City of the Parisii". By the period of the [[Late Roman Empire]] (the 3rd–5th centuries AD), it was known simply as "Parisius" in Latin and "Paris" in French.<ref>Meunier, Florian, ''Le Paris du Moyen Âge'' (2014), Éditions Ouest-France. p. 12.</ref>

From 355 until 360, Paris was ruled by [[Julian (emperor)|Julian]], the nephew of [[Constantine the Great]] and the [[Caesar (title)|Caesar]], or governor, of the western Roman provinces. When he was not campaigning with the army, he spent the winters of 357-358 and 358–359 in the city living in a palace on the site of the modern [[Palais de Justice, Paris|Palais de Justice]]. In February 360, his soldiers proclaimed him [[Augustus (honorific)|Augustus]], or Emperor, and for a brief time, Paris was the capital of the western Roman Empire, until he left in 363 and died fighting the Persians.{{sfn|d'Istria|2002|p=6}}<ref>Combeau, Yvan, ''Histoire de Paris'' (2013), p. 12.</ref> Two other emperors spent winters in the city near the end of the Roman Empire while trying to halt the tide of [[Barbarian invasions]]: [[Valentinian I]] (365–367) and [[Gratian]] in 383.<ref name="Sarmant, Thierry 2012 p. 16-18"/>

The gradual collapse of the Roman empire due to the increasing [[Migration Period|Germanic invasions]] of the 5th century, sent the city into a period of decline. In 451, the city was threatened by the army of [[Attila the Hun]]. The Parisians were planning to abandon the city, but they were persuaded to resist by [[Genevieve|Saint Geneviève]]. Attila bypassed Paris and attacked [[Orléans]]. In 461, the city was threatened again by the [[Salian]] Franks led by [[Childeric I]]. The siege of the city lasted ten years. Once again, Geneviève organized the defense. She rescued the city by bringing wheat to the hungry city from [[Brie (region)|Brie]] and [[Champagne (wine region)|Champagne]]. She became the [[Canonization|patron saint]] of Paris shortly after her death.<ref>Combeau, Yvan, ''Histoire de Paris'' (2013), pp. 13–14.</ref>

The Franks, a Germanic-speaking tribe, moved into northern Gaul as Roman influence declined. Frankish leaders were influenced by Rome; some even fought with Rome to defeat Atilla the Hun. The Franks worshipped the German gods such as Thor. Frankish laws and customs became the basis of French law and customs.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XdSWklI_YRYC&q=Lynn+Harry+Nelson&pg=PP7|title=The Western Frontiers of Imperial Rome|last=Nelson|first=Lynn Harry|isbn=9780765641427|year=1994|publisher=M.E. Sharpe }}</ref>

Latin was no longer the language of everyday speech. The Franks became more politically influential and built up a large army. In 481, the son of Childeric, [[Clovis I]], just sixteen years old, became the new ruler of the Franks. In 486, he defeated the last Roman armies, became the ruler of all of Gaul north of the river [[Loire]] and entered Paris.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Metronome: A History of Paris from the Underground up|last=Deutsch|first=Lorant|publisher=St. Martin's Griffin|year=2013|isbn=9781250023674}}</ref> Clovis helped to drive the Visigoths out of Gaul. He was a king with no fixed capital and no central administration beyond his entourage. By deciding to be interred at Paris, Clovis gave the city symbolic weight. When his grandchildren divided royal power 50 years after his death in 511, Paris was kept as a joint property and a fixed symbol of the dynasty.<ref>Patrick Boucheron, et al., eds. ''France in the World: A New Global History'' (2019) pp. 85–86.</ref>

<gallery widths="180px" heights="180px">
File:CLUNY-Maquette thermes 2.JPG|A model of the [[Thermes de Cluny]], the Roman baths 
File:Thermes-de-Cluny-caldarium.jpg|The Roman baths today, now part of the Cluny Museum
File:Fibule cruciforme gallo-romaine 03.JPG|A Gallo-Roman toga clasp from the late 4th century. Lutetia was famous for its jewelers and craftsmen.
</gallery>