Le Bataclan — Paris

The Bataclan concert hall at 50 Boulevard Voltaire in the 11th arrondissement of Paris was the site of the deadliest of the coordinated terrorist attacks that struck Paris on the night of 13 November 2015. During a concert by the Eagles of Death Metal, three gunmen entered the venue and opened fire, killing 90 of the approximately 1,500 people in attendance. The attacks that night — which also struck the national stadium and several bar and restaurant terraces — killed 130 people in total and wounded hundreds more. It was the deadliest terrorist attack on French soil since the Second World War.

The Bataclan had been a major Paris concert venue since the 1860s — originally a Chinese-themed music hall, it had hosted major rock and pop acts throughout the twentieth century and was a beloved institution of Paris nightlife. Its association with a night of extraordinary violence has permanently altered its significance in the cultural landscape. Eagles of Death Metal's Josh Homme and Jesse Hughes were performing when the shooting began; several members of the band's crew were among those killed. The band subsequently returned to Paris and performed an emotional concert at the same venue.

The Bataclan reopened in November 2016, exactly one year after the attacks, with a concert by Sting. A memorial plaque in the foyer lists the names of the 90 victims who died inside the hall. The venue continues to operate as an active concert space. Flowers and tributes are regularly left at the exterior memorial on Boulevard Voltaire. Paris has integrated the sites of the November 2015 attacks into its public memorial landscape, and the Bataclan remains one of the most poignant and contested of these.