Bois de Vincennes

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The lake

Hippodrome de Vincennes

The Bois de Vincennes is a park in the English landscape manner to the east of Paris. The park is named after the town of Vincennes, and is located south of the town.

The Bois de Vincennes, as the Bois de Boulogne, is generally not counted as part of Paris proper, since it consists only of public land without population except for a few custodians. However, for administrative purposes, it is part of the 12^ème arrondissement of Paris.

It has an area of 9.947 km² (3.841 sq. miles, or 2,458 acres), which is almost three times larger than Central Park in New York, and four times larger than Hyde Park in London.

1 History
2 Features
- 2.1 Lakes
3 External link

[edit] History

Originally a hunting preserve for the kings of France, it became a military exercise area after the French revolution. It was made into a public park by Napoleon III in 1860.

The Bois de Vincennes was officially annexed by the city of Paris in 1929, and was incorporated into the 12^ème arrondissement.

[edit] Features

Château de Vincennes (2005)

In north of the Bois de Vincennes stands the Château de Vincennes, which used to be a favorite second home for many 14th-century kings. Now it is in renovation but it is still open to the public. In the south-west of the park stands the Redoute de Gravelle, a military redoubt constructed under the reign of Louis-Philippe of France in the 19th century.

The Bois de Vincennes is home to several sports venues. In the eastern part lies a hippodrome specialising in trotting races. There is also a velodrome, and the French national institute of sports and physical education.

In the west is a 14.5ha zoo, permanently created in 1934 in place of a smaller temporary zoo constructed for the 1931 exhibition. The zoo breeds Asian elephants, and its most notable feature is a 65m high monolith, home to a herd of mouflons.