Imagine Paris in 1800. At the former main opera house of Paris on Rue de Richelieu—located on the site of today’s Square Louvois—Napoleon narrowly escaped two major assassination attempts.
On October 10, 1800, thanks to the betrayal of an accomplice, the police foiled a plot to stab him. Then, on December 24, 1800, a new attempt took place, known as the “Conspiracy of the Infernal Machine,” planned by royalist Breton Chouans.
The conspirators set up an infernal machine: a barrel filled with gunpowder, nails, and bullets, detonated by a carbine triggered remotely with a string. The device exploded, killing 22 people and injuring around a hundred others. Forty-eight houses were even destroyed. However, the explosion occurred too late—Napoleon had already passed by and emerged unharmed.
Another tragic event also took place here. In 1820, the Duke of Berry—nephew of King Louis XVIII and second son of the Count of Artois—was assassinated as he left the opera.
This event was crucial, as he was the only one capable of providing an heir to the royal family. His murder led to the decision to demolish the opera and build an expiatory chapel in its place. That chapel was in turn demolished in 1839, making way for the Square Louvois that you see today.
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