In the Middle Ages, corpses found in the streets of Paris or fished up in the Seine were collected by nuns of saint - Catherine's hospital, nicknamed " the single women under 25 " by the Parisian. The hospital was situated street Saint-Denis in approximately 300 meters of the cemetery of the Innocents in which the sisters held a right permanent employee to make bury bodies. Further to a contesting of this right arisen between the churchwardens of the saints - Innocents, the chapter of Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois and saint - Catherine's community, a stop of the parliament of Paris on September 29th, 1372, confirming a judgment of Hugues Aubriot, Provost of Paris, of December 23rd, 1371 confirms that " It is the sisters that mean providing in the burial of bodies resulting from the hostel-God of saint-Catherine, or that iceux bodies are brought by Chastelet of Paris or of the aforementioned hostel-God ". It is the first mention stating Grand Châtelet as place of deposit of corpses.
224 Rue Saint-Denis 75002 Paris