Starting around 1851, the guillotine was regularly set up just outside the gates of the prison. Over time, this spot became the main place for executions in Paris and it stayed that way until 1899.
Public executions in the 1800s attracted huge crowds. People often began gathering in the square hours before sunrise. Sometimes thousands showed up. Newspapers covered the events in detail, and for many Parisians the executions were both a warning and a grim form of public spectacle.
The guillotine itself was not left standing there all the time. It was brought in and assembled shortly before each execution. Workers usually built the scaffold during the night so everything would be ready by dawn. When morning came, the prisoner would be led out of the prison gate and straight to the waiting machine.
Today, all that is left are five stone rectangles where the foundation for the guillotine once stood.
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