Bir-Hakeim: station history
Served by: metro line 6.
Did you know?
An elevated line 6 station in the 15th and 16th arrondissements, on the pont de Bir-Hakeim, which spans the Seine. It was first called Grenelle, after the bridge; on 18 June 1949, the station and the bridge were renamed Bir-Hakeim, in memory of the 1942 battle in Libya where the Free French Forces held out against the Afrikakorps. In 1998 the subtitle « Tour Eiffel » was added, the tower being about 650 metres away.
Anecdote
Closed from mid-October 2007 to February 2008 for renovation, four months in all, the station received in 2008 the stained-glass window « Night and Day » by Judy Ledgerwood, given in exchange for a Guimard edicule installed at Van Buren Street in Chicago. The station is near the site of the Vél' d'Hiv; a monument to the victims of the roundup stands there. The Eiffel Tower is covered in the audio guide.
Audio guide
The Eiffel Tower, the Iron Lady
Behind the original idea for a 300-meter-tall iron tower—which would quickly become "Mr. Eiffel's Tower"—were two daring engineers whose names have today been forgotten. Since its inauguration for the 1889 World's Fair, it has welcomed over 300 million visitors!
Around Bir-Hakeim
- Tour Eiffel, 600 m away — The Bir-Hakeim viaduct offers a close-up view of the Eiffel Tower, just a few hundred metres from the Champ-de-Mars.
- Pont de Bir-Hakeim, 180 m away — Built from 1903 to 1905, this 237-m bridge carries line 6 on a viaduct. Called the pont de Passy until 1948, it recalls the battle of Bir Hakeim (Libya, 1942), where the Free French Forces held out against the Afrikakorps.
- Champ-de-Mars, 200 m away — A vast green esplanade at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, a former military drill ground now one of Paris's most visited parks.
- Maison de la Culture du Japon, 60 m away — A cultural centre devoted to Franco-Japanese exchange, offering exhibitions, shows and language classes on the banks of the Seine.
- Jardin Mémorial des Enfants du Vél d'Hiv, 90 m away — A garden commemorating the thousands of Jews, including 4,000 children, arrested during the 1942 Vel' d'Hiv roundup.