Then and now: Incredible composite images compare iconic Paris attractions during Nazi occupation with today's tourist traps
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Whether it be with thousands of tourists queuing or soldiers parading in victory or defeat, Paris's most iconic landmarks are as recognisable today as they were when the city was war torn.
A clever collection of composite images by French art director Julien Knez brings together scenes from 1940s Paris with peaceful pictures of the city we visit now.
In front of the Notre Dame Cathedral, tourists now pile in and out of the revered example of Gothic architecture where Nazi gunners once stood guard and tanks later paraded as soldiers later celebrated the Liberation of Paris.
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Troops drive under the Eiffel Tower, the tourist attraction most synonymous with Paris, in 1940, the year German forces took over the city
The square at the front of the Notre Dame Cathedral, with a Nazi gunner standing guard, vastly differs from the scene today
A young woman and a soldier stand on a tank in from of the Notre Dame Cathedral, one of the world's most revered Gothic churches
Tourists pile in and out of Notre Dame Cathedral where tanks paraded in celebration of the Liberation of Paris
President Charles de Gaulle marches down the Champ Elysees, with the Arc De Triomphe in the background, after the Liberation of Paris
De Gaulle marches ahead of the 2nd Armoured Division down the Champs Elysees where tour buses frequently pass by these days
In another work, where Julien holds an old photo over a modern-day scene, troops drive under the Eiffel Tower, the tourist attraction most synonymous with Paris, in 1940, the year German forces took over the city.
September this year marks 70 years since the end of the Second World War, following last year's milestone marking the anniversary of the Liberation of Paris from Nazi occupation in August 1944.
German soldiers hold up their arms in surrender on the Rue de Castiglione as they walk by what is now The Westin Paris, the hotel facing the Tuileries Garden that opened in 1878 as the Hotel Continental - it was the Inter-Continental Paris from 1969 before it took the current title in 2005.
People celebrate freedom from Germany on Place de la Concorde, the square on which Marie Antoinette and others were executed
The road in Paris's St Michel, where thousands of visitors stroll and shop today, is pulled up in the 1940s
German soldiers hold up their arms in surrender on the Rue de Castiglione as they walk by what is now The Westin Paris hotel
President de Gaulle waves from the window of the Hotel De Ville, which has been the base for the Paris City Council since 1357
Parisians take cover in Place de la Republique, which of course takes its name from the French Republic
Residents rejoice on the Champs Elysees and what it looks like today in another clever composite image by Julien Knez
Soldiers are marched under armed guard passed the Louvre, where today thousands line up every day to visit the famous gallery
President Charles De Gaulle marches down the Champ Elysees, with the Arc De Triomphe in the background, after the Liberation of Paris in another shot with the 2nd Armoured Division behind him.
It is now the spot where the Tour de France concludes and tour buses routinely pass by.
Other images show fearful Parisians hiding behind cars in Place de la Republique and behind the fountains of Place de la Concorde, while soldiers are marched under armed guard past the Louvre, where today thousands of tourists queue to visit the famous gallery.
Paris residents hide from fire behind cars in Place de la Concorde, where the famed guillotine was erected during the French Revolution
A couple lovingly embrace in front of barbed wire in Tuilleries, on the edge of a garden between the Louvre and Place de la Concorde
The camouflage of soldiers is replaced by pedestrians as they stream by the beautifully preserved Palais Garnier opera house
A photographer captures a gun fight in the Rue de Rivoli, where some of the most fashionable shopping outlets in Paris are now found
Soldiers celebrate the end of German occupation in front of the Hotel de Ville, where local government is run from
People hide from gunfire in Place de la Concordea behind a fountain, which was designed by German-born Jacques Ignace Hittorff
A soldier smokes on the historic Place de la Concorde, which has undergone several name changes based on the rulers of the day
Pedestrians text on their mobile phones in modern-day St Michel in Paris while a car burns out in the street in the 1940s
Children on a beaten up military car on Avenue Mozart, Paris, where now modern cars park on the quiet, tree-lined seat
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Paris has so many attractions and things to do in Paris, thanks for your blog to explaining all the details of Paris destinations.
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