The Jardin d'Acclimatation is a 19 ha children's amusement park in the northern part of the Bois de Boulogne in western Paris. Opened in 1860, it features a number of attractions.
History
Opened on 6 October 1860 by Napoléon III and Empress Eugénie, this Paris zoo was originally known as Jardin Zoologique d'Acclimatation, where plants and animals from the colonies could acclimatise to France's weather conditions.[1] It was directed by Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, son of the naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, until his death in 1861.
During the Siege of Paris (1870–1871), many of the animals in the zoo were cooked and served by chef Alexandre Étienne Choron due to wartime deprivation.[2]
From 1877 until 1912, the Jardin Zoologique d'Acclimatation was converted to l'Acclimatation Anthropologique. In mid-colonialism, the curiosity of Parisians was attracted to the customs and lifestyles of foreign peoples. Nubians, Bushmen, Zulus, and many other African peoples were "exhibited" in a human zoo