14 h 43 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 14 h 43 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What can an island, a street name, and a hungry crowd reveal about the making of Paris?
In The Story of Paris, Thomas Okey follows a small settlement on the Île de la Cité as it grows into one of Europe’s great cities. The Parisii, Roman rulers, Frankish kings, and bishops all take their place in a history shaped by the Seine and the struggle for power.
But this is not only a story of rulers. Okey turns to teachers on the left bank, guilds, and ordinary townspeople. War brings hunger and division; royal power grows stronger; the streets become a stage for revolt. Through churches, landmarks, and street names, he shows how the city carries its past.
What you’ll discover
- An island beginning Meet the Parisii beside the Seine, where the city’s long story begins.
- A royal city takes shape Follow Clovis and the bishops as Paris grows into a centre of power.
- Life beyond the court Discover teachers, students, guilds, and townspeople whose lives give the city its character.
- Stones that hold history Look at churches and street names as clues to the people and struggles behind them.
- The streets turn restless Trace the hunger, tension, and resistance that connect Paris with the idea of revolution.
Who will love it
This book will delight travelers who like to know who lived behind a doorway, readers who enjoy kings, saints and rebels, and anyone who wants to walk Paris with its stories in mind.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Trade and defense chose the island for Paris
- Roman Lutetia received its first saints
- Clovis and his heirs soaked early France in blood
- Paris held firm against the Norman fleet
- Philip Augustus and St. Louis made medieval Paris
- Gothic art and a great university rose together
- Kings, rebels and a peasant girl tested the city
- Printing, art and massacre marked the sixteenth century
- Absolute kings emptied the treasury and Paris paid
- Revolution and Napoleon made modern Paris, and you can walk it
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La storia di Parigi
by Thomas Okey · 1906
A river island, a line of merchants and a ring of walls grow into Paris, told through its kings, saints and rebels.
Challenging10–20 hours to readItaliano
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In short
Why would a small island in a river grow into the capital of a great nation? Thomas Okey answers with a merchant's eye.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Trade and defense chose the island for Paris
Okey opens with a gentle joke. Medieval scribes traced every city to a Trojan prince, so Paris was founded by Paris himself, the man who carried off Helen. Okey prefers a plainer rule. Look for the merchant, he says.
The islands of the Seine lie near where the Marne, the Oise and the Yonne join the main river. Before Roman roads, trade meant water. The largest island, the Cité, sat inside a natural moat of deep water. The Parisii, a Gallic tribe of sailors and merchants, were perfectly placed to profit.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 8 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1906
- Language
- Italiano
- Level
- Challenging
Cite this edition
Okey, Thomas. The Story of Paris. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-paris.
Okey, T. (2026). The story of Paris. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-paris (Original work published 1906)
Okey, Thomas. The Story of Paris. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-paris.
@book{okey2026story,
author = {Okey, Thomas},
title = {The Story of Paris},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-paris},
note = {First published 1906}
}
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What is The Story of Paris by Thomas Okey about?
It tells the history of Paris from the Gallic island settlement and Roman Lutetia through the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the absolute monarchy, the Revolution and the Third Republic, then guides the reader through its main streets and buildings.
Is The Story of Paris a guidebook or a history?
It is both. The first part is a narrative history told through kings, saints, rebels and builders, and the second part is a walking guide that takes you to the places where the stories happened.
When was The Story of Paris written?
Okey wrote it for a series on medieval towns. It appeared in 1906 as a revision of his earlier work, and a second edition followed in 1911 with updates for demolished buildings and changes in the Louvre.
The author
Thomas Okey
1852–1935 · British scholar and translator
Thomas Okey was a British basket weaver and scholar, born in 1852. He lived in England and died in 1935. He wrote The Story of Paris, published in 1906, and translated works from Italian into English. In 1919, he became professor of Italian at the University of Cambridge.
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