General Information

The Square du Vert-Galant is a square located at the western tip of the Ile de la Cité. It is located 7 metres below the present level of the island, which shows the former level of the streets. The square is named after Henry IV, nicknamed the ‘Vert-Galant’ because, notwithstanding his advanced age, he had many mistresses.

Additional Information

Before hosting a square, the site was devolved to the baths in 1765 and a hundred years later to café, which was destroyed by a flood in 1879. The square is dominated by an equestrian statue of Henry IV, based on the Pont Neuf (which separates the square from the rest of the island). A commemorative plaque reminds that this is the place where the two highest dignitaries of the Order of the Temple, Jacques de Molay and Geoffroy de Charnay, were executed on 18th March 1314.