Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The château de Grenelle was originally a large farm belonging to the abbey of Sainte-Geneviève, located in the agricultural plain of Grenelle, on the banks of the Seine. This estate, isolated between Paris and Vaugirard, included a seigneurial hotel, a chapel, stables and cultivated land, connected to the capital by the current rue de Grenelle. In the 18th century, a French garden was added, and part of the land was transferred to the Crown in 1751 and 1753 to finance the construction of the Military School.

In 1794, the castle, which had become a national property and had been transformed into a powder factory, exploded violently on 31 August, causing more than a thousand victims and considerable damage to the surrounding area. After its reconstruction, the site was acquired by the Military Engineers in 1820 and converted into a gymnasium and then a cavalry district in 1860. The remains of the castle were finally replaced by barracks between 1852 and 1856, successively housing cavalry regiments, firemen, and the first regiment of the train until their demolition in 1989.

Today, the location of the castle corresponds to Dupleix Square and Nicole-de-Hauteclocque Square in the 15th arrondissement of Paris. The preserved barracks on Dupleix Square and the surrounding green spaces recall its history, while the Dupleix ZAC, built in 1988, replaced the former military installations. The site reflects the urban and military transformations of Paris, from the Ancien Régime to the contemporary era.

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