FIELD OF WATERLOO, BELGIUM. The scene of the greatest battle of modern times, if not of all times, is necessarily of perennial interest to the world. It is a matter for rejoicing, therefore, that the field of Waterloo is retained in much the same condition in which it was left on the fateful day of June 18th, 1815, when the power of Napoleon was crushed by Wellington and Blucher. To be sure, Wellington is reported to have said: “You have spoilt my battlefield,” when he saw the artificial mound surmounted by a Belgic lion of cast-iron, which has been raised in the centre of the field. But at least its one hundred and fifty feet of height afford the opportunity for an excellent bird’s-eye view of the entire field. And the old house of Hougemont, whose building and orchard were occupied by the British Guards, and where some of the fiercest fighting of the day was carried on, remains as it was, with the bullet holes in the walls and other damages unrepaired. The monument represented in the foreground is dedicated to the soldiers who fell in the battle.
NOTRE DAME, PARIS. The cathedral of Notre Dame, one of the great historical churches of the world and one of the most beautiful specimens of mediæval architecture, was founded in 1163 on the site of an earlier church, was consecrated in 1182 and was completed in 1420. It suffered sadly during the Revolution, when it was made a Temple of Reason; was restored in 1845, and during the time of the commune narrowly escaped destruction by fire. The form is that of a Latin cross, with a nave and double aisles, which are continued around the choir, the earliest example known. The façade is one of the most admired pieces of early Gothic. The triple portal is ornamented by rich bas-reliefs. In the second story is a great rose window, flanked by double windows, enclosed in wide-spreading Gothic arches. The third story is an open gallery of slender arches and columns. In one of the towers is a famous bell, weighing thirty-two thousand pounds, which is only rung on state occasions. The interior of the church is adorned with sculptures, bas-reliefs and paintings and magnificent rose windows of stained glass.
PLACE DE LA BASTILLE, PARIS, FRANCE. This square ends the line of the original boulevards, and marks the beginning of the Faubourg St. Antoine. It is historically interesting as the site of the Bastille, the former state prison of France, whose destruction by the Parisian mob on July 14th, 1789, marked the real beginning of the French Revolution. The column in the middle, known as the Colonne de Juillet, was reared in 1831 in honor of the citizens who fell in the revolution of July, 1830, which drove Charles X from the throne and put Louis Philippe in his place. The names of six hundred and fifteen of these are inscribed upon the sides of the column, and their ashes, together with those of combatants in the revolution of 1848, repose in two vast sarcophagi in the vaults below. The column is of bronze, one hundred and fifty-four feet high, and is divided by four collars into five divisions. Bas-reliefs, by Barye, adorn the exterior. Inside there is a spiral stair-case, also of bronze. The top is surmounted by an emblematic figure of Liberty, in gold bronze, the work of Dumont.
PLACE DE LA CONCORDE, PARIS, FRANCE. This square, situated between the Rue Royale and the Pont de la Concorde, is perhaps the most beautiful and effective in all Paris. It dates from the year 1748. Originally it was adorned with a statue of Louis XV, which was pulled down in 1792 to make way for a colossal figure of Liberty. The place was then called Place de la Revolution. It was here that next year the guillotine was erected, upon which perished Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette and nearly three thousand of their adherents. Under the Directory the Statue of Liberty was removed and the great place became the Place de la Concorde. Since then it has undergone many alterations. It was laid out as it now stands by Napoleon III. In the middle is the great Obelisk of Luxor, presented to Louis Philippe by Mehemet Ali, and on each side are two large fountains. At the different corners of the square there are seated figures, representing eight different towns, formerly the chief towns of France. But one of them, Strasbourg, is now a portion of Germany.
PLACE VENDOME, PARIS. A handsome octagonal square, between the Boulevard des Capucines and the Tuileries Gardens. It was designed by Louis XIV, in 1686, to contain public buildings, such as the Mint, the Royal Library, the various academies, &c. This plan was subsequently much modified. The buildings, which are of Corinthian architecture of a severely uniform appearance, are mainly occupied by banks and other fiscal institutions. A grand equestrian statue of Louis XIV once stood in the centre of the square, but it was destroyed in 1792, and in 1806 its place was taken by the famous Vendome column, a stone shaft one hundred and forty-three feet high, covered with the metal of cannon taken from the Prussians and Austrians. It is surmounted by a statue of Napoleon, and is ornamented by bas-reliefs commemorative of that hero’s campaign in 1805. In 1871 column and statue were both pulled down by the Commune, but the Republic under Thiers repaired and replaced them.
