The Conciergerie was originally a part of the palace of King Philip IV (Philip the Fair) (1284-1314).The royal family abandoned the palace in 1358, moving across the river to the Louvre. In 1391 the building was converted for use as a prison. It became internationally infamous as the "antechamber to the guillotine" during the Reign of Terror, the bloodiest phase of the French Revolution. It housed the Revolutionary Tribunal as well as up to 1,200 male and female prisoners at a time The most famous prisoners (and victims) included Queen Marie Antoinette, the poet André Chénier, Charlotte Corday, Madame du Barry and the Girondins, who were condemned by Georges Danton, who was in turn condemned by Robespierre, who was himself condemned and executed in a final bout of bloodletting."
Despite the terrible history, the building itself is still an architectural marvel and a popular tourist attraction in modern times, as this painting of a stone spiral staircase in the interior of La Conciergerie testifies.
