Gare de l'Est

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See also: Gare de l'Est (Paris Métro)
Front of the Gare de l'Est (2007)
Front of the Gare de l'Est (2007)

The Gare de l'Est ("East station" in English) is one of the six large SNCF termini in Paris. It is in the Xe arrondissement, not far from the Gare du Nord, facing the boulevard de Strasbourg, part of the north-south axis of Paris created by Baron Haussmann. It is one of the largest and the oldest railway stations in Paris.

Contents

[edit] History

Detail of the main entrance
Detail of the main entrance
View of the entrance foyer
View of the entrance foyer
Hall leading to the Métro station
Hall leading to the Métro station
Main arrival and departure hall
Main arrival and departure hall
TGV trains waiting
TGV trains waiting

The Gare de l'Est was opened in 1849 by the Compagnie du Chemin de Fer de Paris à Strasbourg (the Paris-Strasbourg Railway Company) under the name "Strasbourg platform." This platform corresponds today with the hall for main-line trains, and was designed by the architect François Duquesney. It was renamed the "Gare de l'Est" in 1854, after the expansion of service to Mulhouse.

Renovations to the station followed in 1885 and 1900. In 1931 it was doubled in size, with the new part of the station built symmetrically with the old part. This transformation changed the surrounding neighborhood significantly.

At the top of the west façade of the Gare de l'Est is a statue by the sculptor Philippe-Joseph-Henri Lemaire, representing the city of Strasbourg, while the east end of the station is crowned by a statue personifying Verdun, by Varenne. These two cities are important destinations serviced by Gare de l'Est.

On 4 October 1883, the Gare de l'Est saw the first departure of the Orient Express for Istanbul.

The Gare de l'Est is the terminus of a strategic railway network extending towards the eastern part of France, and it saw large mobilizations of French troops, most notably in 1914, at the beginning of the World War I. In the main-line train hall, a monumental painting by Alfred Herter, dating from 1926, illustrates the departure of these soldiers for the Western front.

SNCF has started service on LGV Est Europeen from Gare de l'Est on 10 June 2007, with TGV and ICE service to north-eastern France, southern Germany and Switzerland. Trains are initially planned to run at 320 km/h (198 mph), with the potential to run at 350 km/h (217 mph), cutting travel times by up to 2 hours.

[edit] Transport

[edit] Important destinations served by trains from the Gare de l'Est

[edit] Terminal list

Previous Line Next
Terminus   TGV
Paris-Strasbourg-Switzerland-Germany
  Strasbourg
Terminus   TGV
Paris-Metz-Luxembourg
  Metz
Terminus   TGV
Paris-Champagne Ardenne
  Reims
Terminus   ICE
Paris-Frankfurt
  Forbach
Terminus   TGV
Paris-Nancy-Vallées Vosgiennes
  Nancy
Terminus   TER Alsace
Paris-Mulhouse-Bâle
  Troyes
Terminus   TER Champagne Ardenne
Paris-Cangnan
  Chateau Thierry
Terminus   TER Champagne Ardenne
Paris-Chaumont-Bâle
  Nogent sur Seine
Terminus   TER Champagne Ardenne
Paris-St Dizier
  Chateau Thierry
Terminus   Transilien Paris – Est   Noisy le Sec
Calais Ville   Venice Simplon Orient Express
London-Paris-Rome
  Innsbruck
Hauptbahnhof
Terminus   Venice Simplon Orient Express
Paris-Istanbul
  Keleti
Pályaudvar
Vienna
Westbahnhof
  Venice Simplon Orient Express
Venice-Budapest-London
  Calais Ville
Frankfurt
Hauptbahnhof
  Venice Simplon Orient Express
Venice-Prague-London
  Calais Ville

[edit] See also

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Coordinates: 48°52′37″N, 2°21′33″E