Memorial to the Martyrs of the Deportation

An underground concrete crypt at the southern tip of the Ile de la Cite behind Notre-Dame, memorial to the roughly 200,000 deportees sent from France between 1941 and 1944. Designed by architect Georges-Henri Pingusson and inaugurated in 1962 by Charles de Gaulle. Visitors descend through a narrow shaft between sharp high walls, a deliberate sensation of confinement. Inside opens a long corridor lit by 200,000 small points of light, one for each deportee. The walls carry the names of the camps and verses by Aragon, Eluard, and Saint-Exupery. The memorial has been classified a historic monument since 2007. Entry is free but visitor numbers are limited, and inside the silence is usually total. Many find the site by accident, not realizing what lies beneath the embankment.