The French Catacombs and the

Revolution.
The French Catacombs are located under the capital city LaVille
Lumire, which means The City of Light. They hold up to 6 million former
inhabitants of Paris, and they are over 300 kilometers (186 mile) long. In the
18th century cemeteries such as Les Innocents (largest cemetery in Paris)
were becoming over populated. Because they could not bury the bodies in
the cemetery the bodies would be unearthed, with open graves, and
improper burials. In result the people who lived near the cemeteries were
complaining to the church about the smell of the rotting flesh. Also because
the rotting corpses were out in the open and exposed they also caused
disease. The ruler at the time was Louis XV and in 1793 he banned any
burials in the capital city at the cemeteries. In the spring of 1780 the rains
were so great that the walls of the cemetery collapsed. The collapse of the
wall resulted in the dead rotting bodies to be washed into the streets. This of
course created a big uproar with the people. They decided in 1786 that they
would turn the old abandoned Tombe-Issoire quarries were blessed and
consecrated, so they turned them into a mass grave like structure. It took all
of two years to move everybody in the Les Innocents into the catacombs.
The practice of burying someone in the catacombs started after the French
Revolution. In 1859 the people of France transferred the last remaining bones

into the catacombs. The whole thing was completed in 1860. In 1867 they
opened it to the public.
Today the catacombs are still open to the public. Not all of the
catacombs, only the structurally sound places are. In 1970-to present people
will illegally explore parts of the catacombs. These people are called
Cataphiles. They turn the old chambers into recreational places to go to. In
one case historians had found one chamber with an amphitheater in it. It was
equipped with a projection screen, a projector and equipment, films, and
chairs or seats. The next chamber over was a fully-stocked bar and
restaurant. It is estimated that 300 cataphiles enter through secret entrances
every week. It is said if you ask a cataphiles to take you with them and you
are a tourist or not a cataphiles then they will not take you. They think of the
catacombs as theyre place to go for silence and relaxation.
Not only was the impact of the French Revolution felt in France, it was
felt all over the world. The French Revolution was a fight between the
Monarchy and the people. The people of France at the time were very poor.
So they were very unhappy with the King and Queen. The Monarchy decided
on an execution weapon called the guillotine that was a big slanted blade on
a cord. The executer would pull the rope up and release it on the persons
neck. As the revolution continued to get worse the killing was terrible. Any
person who thought that you were conspiring or talking against the people
they would put you to death. On July 14, rioters stormed the Bastille, a
prison. They did it to get weapons and gun powder.

On August 14 the idea of Enlightenment was introduced to the council.

Then on September 3 the first constitution was written. They made France a
constitutional monarchy, which the king liked the idea of veto power and the
ability to appoint ministers. January 21 the king was sentenced to death for
high treason, and was sent to the guillotine. Nine months later MarieAntoinette was also sentenced with the same charge. After the death of the
king and queen, Napoleon Bonaparte came into power and made France
what it is today.