Paris by Metro: An Underground History

'Not only travelers but Parisians will have the Paris Metro explained by perusing this book in ways they never have before. An absolutely essential guide to really knowing Paris.' observes Robert Cole, author of "A Traveller's History of Paris". What was the original name of the Place de la Concorde? Why was the Tuileries palace so called and when was it destroyed? Who built the Palais Royal? Find the answers to these questions and many others in this fascinating new book, which gives you the history behind the names of all the Metro stations in Paris. Arnold Delaney's text is full of illuminating insights into hidden corners of the history of the world's most elegant city. Take Le Kremlin - Bicetre, an intriguing example of how, over many centuries, names evolve and become corrupted: "...known for its Bicetre Hospital, parts of which date back to the seventeenth century. The town's website explains that the Kremlin portion of the name is due to the fact that after Napoleon's retreat from Moscow in 1812 a hospice for his soldiers was set up in the town and the local pub was called Le Sergent du Kremlin. Bicetre came about because at the end of the thirteenth century Jean de Pontoise the Bishop of Winchester owned land here. The locals had difficulty pronouncing Winchester which became Vincestre and evolved to become Bicetre." The text is complemented by colour photography especially commissioned for the book, which takes a slightly idiosyncratic look at the city as well as giving a taste of the quintessential design and feel of the Metro system.