Baron Georges Eugene Haussmann

Paris in the l9th century was anything but beautiful the metropolis of Lights was a metropolis of disparity graceful monuments, historic produceings and slum dwellings, sat side by side. The narrow streets were catch-alls for chamber pots that were emptied into the streets from windows, the sewer system was inadequate, for a urban center with a million inhabitants, and prompting extremely unhealthy conditions that bred disease and completely one out of five ho holdholds had running water.This statement from Jean-Jacques Rousseau, a Genevan philosopher depicts a shot picture of Old Paris, Entering through the faubourg Saint Marceau, I saw only small, dirty and stinking streets, ugly black houses, an air of filth, poverty, beggars, carters, sewing women, women vend tisanes and old hats (British library. ) All of these issues would be history with the citys modernization done at an unprecedented pace by Baron Georges-Eugene Hauss earthly concernn. Baron Haussmann was born, in Paris , on March 27th, 1809. He was educated at theCollege Henry IV, studied law, while simultaneously taking classes at the Conservatoire de Paris, because he was a full musician. He diverted from being a lawyer, turning his focus on architecture, becoming a civil engineer and career administrator. Mr. Haussmann was appointed sous-prefet (state representative) of Nerac, a pass of the Lot-et-Garonne department in southwestern France, in l830. He advanced quickly in the civil service venue in l853 he was appointed the prefet of the fish Department, (department in France is similar to a county) and remained in that position until l870.During this time period, Baron Haussmann was made senator in l857, grand cross at the Legion dhonneur, a premier order of France, in l862, and a member of the Academy of Fine Arts in l867. (wikipedia) He died on January 11, l891 in Paris, leaving a invariable and evolving legacy. The Barons name is preserved on the Boulevard Haussmann and in the very core of the City of Lights. Now that I have given a brief, biographical summary of Mr. Haussmanns life, here is a elaborated look at his accomplishments, historical impact on urbanism and constant influence in like a shots society.Emperor nap III, nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the last monarch to rule France, wanted to be acknowledged as a great communal engineer. He was partial tone to helping the poor, working class people of Paris and desperately wanted to shape the city in to a progressive, healthy environment. There was also a safety issue, the Emperor needed to address it was imperative that he reduce the ability of future revolutionaries to defy the government, by benefiting on the medieval maze of streets to considerably form barricades. Devising wider streets for logical maneuvers, would allow battalions and artillery to circulate effortlessly.Napoleon III rightly chose, the best civil engineer in Paris, Baron Haussmann to implement the reconstruction of his capital. Th e Emperor let Haussmann maintain substantial executive power and extensive finances with this project. Ultimately, over a decade and a half he dog-tired 2,115,000,000 francs, the equivalence of 1. 5 billion in todays currency. Napoleon also protected Haussmann from the myriad of critics, this was fundamental for his success. Paris would undergo a study transformation and people had dickens different views of Haussmann one as a man who would demolish old Paris , and the other as a man who would create a newParis. Haussmanization is what this massive undertaken was dubbed, its actual definition being, the creative destruction of something for the betterment of society, (wiktionary). The criticism the Baron received was that specific, Parisians were dissolute by the destruction of buildings, including whole neighborhoods. In theyre opinion, there was no betterment, the wide streets had a diminutive purpose, except for being anti-riot streets, and all Haussmann did for the poor exp anses was to build encompassing boulevards from which they could be subjugated (British lib.) Another, subject he was disparaged for, was his methods of financing the projects, which included apply his connections with realtors. Haussmann would allow them to purchase property along the new boulevards in alter for an exuberant profit. This issue ignited an intense political controversy and even though the allegation were never proven , it eventually led to the Barons dismissal as the prefet, on January 5, l870. Napoleon III had no choice if he was to increase the approval rating of this regime.Parisians who viewed Haussmanns modernization of Paris as positive, and new he would be providing a much needed service to the city, far out numbered the opposition. Most of the people perceived the streets as they actually were unsanitary, with food waste and waste left by a faulty sewer system, crowded, damp, shanties covered in mud, and confusing. The narrow streets, with no sidewalks, di scouraged prospective customers from going to shops, and during Pariss recurrent spates of civil disorder, made it easier to form barricades. Haussmannization would deliver a new Paris, a healthy, moreorganized, safer city. Baron Haussmanns first task was to create a detailed map of Paris, this would be the basis of his work. He then installed wood towers throughout the city, taller than surrounding buildings to serve as triangulation points in the surveying process. This was an advanced engineering process, conjecture is still use today. Triangulation is finding coordinates and the distance of a point by calculating the length of different sides of a triangle. Devising the towers, for this purpose, was ingenious. The transformation was now underway, using 1500 architects and over 60,000 workers.Paris was deemed the largest construction site in the world, and would hold that title for two decades (France monthly). Three quarters of the Ile de la Cite, was destroyed to construct a central area for the Palais de Justice, police headquarters and barracks. Ile de la Cite is one of two islands in the Seine River, the other is Ile Saint-Louis, is the center of Paris and where the city was founded (wikipedia). Approximately 15,000 homes were pulled down and the only buildings untouched were Notre Dame, the Saint-Chapelle, Conciergie and the Palais de Justice.Haussmanns beautification of Paris, includes the star-shaped Place de lEtoile, which is a large urban junction with a meeting point of twelve straight avenues, nigh the Arc de Triomphe, several new parks, gardens and the planting of over hundred,000 trees. The Baron admired the large and central London parks, such(prenominal) as the Hyde and Regent Parks, and decided to created two comparable ones, . most notably the Bois de Boulogne, and the Bois de Vincennes. The Baron built or rebuilt several market, the most famous redesigned market was the Les Halles, the first major building project to use iron-frame co nstruction.This material allowed for improved control of the citys food supplies and lessening of health hazards (SafariX). Another famous redesign was the Palais Garnier, commonly known as opera de Paris, and named after its architect, Charles Garnier, who was chosen by the Baron to supervise the project. Mr. Garnier was instructed to build a 2nd theatre for the famous Parisian Opera and Ballet Companies. Legend says that Napoleon IIIs wife asked Garnier if it would be built in Greek or Roman style and he replied, It is in the Napoleon III style, Madame (msn. Encarta) Haussmann oblige a regulationthat required all new buildings to have a standardized height and design, this gave modern Paris characteristic landscape. Haussmanns plan continued with organizing the city by numbering districts and houses. Parisians lives were made easier with the numeration. Wide, straight, new boulevards with commanding facades, converging at major junctions, marked by monuments, public buildings a nd points of significance such as city gates or railway stations, were made to facilitated traffic movement, eliminate cramped streets, and provide proficient access for army troops from the provinces to get under ones skin into the city,if needed. Baron Haussmanns implemented a railway network, with six new railroads stations, operating outside the city, improving transportation and directly contributing to a grow economic environment. The railways contributed to the development of coal mining and the steel industry in France, bringing theyre economy into a contemporary age of large outstrip free enterprise. The design of the streets combined with the new public transportation allowed Parisians an easy access to the city and its shops, museums, theatre etc., encouraged people to flaunt their new wealth. in all probability the most imperative part of the modernization of Paris was the purification and decontamination of their ancient sewer system. A complete renovation was imper ative to instill healthy conditions in the city. Haussmann named engineer Eugene Belgrad, Director of Water and Sewers of Paris, who attacked the problem by creating sort of a city under the city, The system harnessed underwater springs, some over 100 kilometers from Paris, then brought fresh, clean water by aqueducts to flush out the waste (France Monthly).The sewer system, although underground, didnt go unobserved, Haussmann ensured that it became a showpiece, even providing transportation for their viewing, the system, to this day, is considered a tourist attractioin. Baron Haussmann and Napoleon IIIs architectural strategy for the modernization of Paris is largely responsible for the citys present appearance and for the ground of current and almost certainly, future designs. The Barons vision of a city came into fruition, making Paris one of the most magnificently beautiful cities, a formidable economic power, with much healthier living conditions.Haussmann still continues to inspire architectural design. One example is the City Beautiful Movement, a progressive reclaim movement in North American architect, in the1800s and 1900s, its primary objective was to revamp poverty-stricken urban environments. Haussmannian Revolution, a term used because, for the first time in history, under an emporer, a single man systematically modernized a city on such a mammoth scope (France Monthly). Work Cited British Library, An Imperial Capital Baron Haussmanns Transformation of Pariswww. mapforum. com/15blmap. htm France Monthly, Baron Haussmann, and the Transformation of Paris, 2006 www. francemonthly. com/n/1202/index. php MSN. Encartam, Paris (city, France)-MSN Encarta 2007 http//Encarta. msn. com/encylopedia SafariX, Haussmannization and Ostentation http//www. safarix. com/0131932934/ch15lev1sec2 Wikipedia, Baron Haussman, 2 April 2007 www. widipedia. org/wiki/Baron_Haussmann Wikitionary, Etymology, 8 December 2006 http//en. wikitionary. org