Saints Innocents Cemetery, Former Catholic cemetery in Paris
Saints Innocents Cemetery was a major burial ground in Paris centered around a church building. The site was densely packed with graves and featured multiple entrances that allowed local people to visit throughout the day.
This burial ground was established around 1130 and served Parisians for nearly 650 years. In the late 1700s it was closed due to health concerns that prompted a complete rethinking of how the city handled burials.
For centuries, this was Paris's primary burial ground for people of all classes, shaping the spiritual and everyday life of the neighborhood. Its central location made it a gathering place where the community assembled for religious ceremonies and communal events.
The cemetery was completely cleared in the late 1700s and no longer exists as a burial ground; the area is now part of the city street layout. Visitors can explore the streets where it once stood to get a sense of where this major landmark was located.
Tens of thousands of remains from those buried here were transferred into Paris's underground tunnels, creating the Catacombs. This massive relocation represented a dramatic shift in how the city chose to handle its dead on an unprecedented scale.
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