When War Torn Rubble Met Royal Imagination Became Paris

"Today, Paris is a city of light and romance, full of broad avenues, picturesque bridges and countless tourists visiting to soak in its charms."

"But the French capital wasn't always a stylish destination, says historian Joan DeJean. She's written about all things French and fashionable, from the birth of luxury goods to the rise of the celebrity hair stylist (which began during the terribly chic reign of Louis XIV). In her new book, How Paris Became Paris, DeJean starts with a look at the dismal condition of Paris in the late 1500s. The long wars between Protestants and Catholics had ended, but the toll on the city had been immense."

"It was a city torn apart by warfare. Paris at that time is so desolate, so burned out, that contemporary observers talk about wolves roaming freely in the streets of the city, DeJean tells NPR's Renee Montagne. 'Paris was also a city largely empty: huge spaces of empty terrain everywhere in the city. And the new king, Henry IV, had a lot of imagination and energy.'"