Porte Saint-Antoine

The Porte Saint-Antoine stands as a phantom in the street plan of Paris, marked today by a bronze plaque near the metro station. It functioned as a fortified gateway in the wall of Charles the Fifth, controlling the flow of goods and people into the city from the east. In fifteen fifty-nine, King Henry the Second staged a tournament here to celebrate a peace treaty. He charged at a captain of the Scottish Guard, whose broken lance pierced the King's golden visor, killing him.