Paris in the 18th century the Marquis de Lafayette organized a "Garde nationale" to defend the city against the army. On 14 July, a mob seized the arsenal at the Invalides, acquiring thousands of guns, and stormed the Bastille, a symbol of royal authority, a prison which at the time held only seven prisoners, and was defended by eighty invalid soldiers, reinforced by thirty-six Swiss guards. About forty Revolutionaries were killed in the fighting. The governor of the Bastille, the Marquis de Launay, surrendered and then was killed, and his head put on the end of a pike and carried around Paris. The Provost of
Bastille (Paris Métro) longer than the average Métro platform length. The line 1 station opened as part of the first stage of the line between Porte de Vincennes and Porte Maillot on 19 July 1900. The line 5 platforms were opened on 17 December 1906 when the line was extended from Gare de Lyon to Lancry (now known as "Jacques Bonsergent"). The line 8 platforms were opened on 5 May 1931 when the line was extended from Richelieu – Drouot to Porte de Charenton. The platforms on line 1 were decorated in 1989 to celebrate the bicentenary of the French Revolution. Bastille (Paris