Paris Under Water How the City of Light Survived the Great Flood of 1910

by Jackson, Jeffrey H.

• ISBN13: 9780230617063
• ISBN10: 0230617069
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-01-05
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Summary

In the winter of 1910, the river that brought life to Paris--the Seine--became a force of destruction in a matter of hours. Torrential rainfall saturated the soil, and faulty engineering created conditions that soon drowned Parisian streets, homes, businesses, and museums, thrusting the City of Light into a battle with the elements. Given the Parisians' history of deep-seated social, religious, and political strife, many worried that they wouldn't be able to collaborate to confront the crisis. Yet while the sewers, Metro, and electricity failed around them, Parisians of all backgrounds rallied to save the city and one another. Improvising techniques to keep Paris functioning and braving the dangers of collapsing infrastructure and looters, leaders and residents alike answered the call to action.In breathtaking detail, Jeffrey Jackson captures here for the first time the epic story of the great flood. As the waters rise, so does the tension, but ultimately, the Parisians' love of their city leads them to triumph over nature against all odds.

Author Biography

Jeffrey H. Jackson is a professor of history at Rhodes College in Memphis, and has worked in the Parisian archives for ten years. He was recently honored as one of the top young historians in the United States and was a consultant for the documentary “Harlem in Montmartre: A Paris Jazz Story” on PBS. He lives in Memphis, Tennessee.

Table of Contents

List of figures	p. ix
Prologue	p. 1
Introduction	p. 5
Water Rising
The Surprising Rise of the Seine	p. 27
The River Attacks	p. 49
Paris Under Siege	p. 69
Paris Under Water
Rescuing a Drowned City	p. 97
Up to the Neck	p. 121
A City on the Brink	p. 139
Water Falling
The City of Mud and Filth	p. 159
After the Flood	p. 183
Making Sense of the Flood	p. 203
Epilogue	p. 229
timeline of events	p. 229
a note on the history of the flood	p. 231
notes	p. 235
selected bibliography	p. 249
acknowledgments	p. 253
index	p. 255
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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