Écluse du Temple

The Écluse du Temple is a double lock system on the Canal Saint-Martin that helps manage the flow of water and vessels navigating through the heart of Paris. These locks are a critical part of a broader engineering network designed by order of Napoleon Bonaparte in the early nineteenth century to bring fresh water into a city then ravaged by waterborne diseases like cholera. The project was funded by a tax on wine, a detail that reflects the creative and often unusual methods used to finance the massive urban infrastructure of the era. Watching a boat navigate these locks offers a glimpse into the industrial history of the canal, which was once a bustling commercial artery for grain and building materials before shifting into the recreational space it is today.