Underneath a chalk hill in France lies what Hitler hoped would be the underground launching base for a devastating new weapon.

An ancient ossuary in Rouen.

A centuries-old complex of hand-dug stone chambers has sheltered locals in times of trouble.

The post-apocalyptic remnants of a bucolic town ruined by a plane crash.

An iconic and eccentric bar for "Manouche" Jazz music keeps expanding its space—and its influence.

Beggars were miraculously "cured" of their fake ailments when they returned home to this 17th century Paris slum each night.

This innocuous-seeming building is actually the remnant of a major wartime brothel.

This stunning French estate was so lavish that it landed its original owner in jail for the rest of his life.

Beautiful carved tunnels.

Monsters and miniatures are held in equal esteem at this wondrous museum.

A unique museum tells the story of the day-to-day life of World War I soldiers.

A swath of France so devastated by war it is still forbidden to go there.

This modern French ossuary contains the jumbled bones of 130,000 WWI soldiers.

Massive puppet-automaton machines created by French artist collective Machines de l’Ile.

This Paris art space celebrates the creativity and ingenuity that springs from abject poverty, especially in Africa.

Skeletons, medical artifacts, and other obscure and precious treasures all displayed in a wooden pharmacist's cabinet.

Where the high court feasted, frolicked, and high courtesans put their royal lovers' diamonds to the test.

This historic island prison holds one of the dungeons from the Count of Monte Cristo even though it is a work of fiction.

Pitié-Salpêtrière was the dumping grounds for women who received the dreaded diagnosis of "hysterical."

The water-powered carriages are long gone, but for over a century this funicular railway has been the fastest route to the highest point in Paris.

Sacked by Vikings, blessed by William the Conqueror, dealt a fatal blow during the French Revolution—these ruins have seen it all.

Stroll through retro Paris while shopping for old postcards and discarded doll heads.

This Parisian fountain is a little bit fantasy and a little bit nightclub.

Statue of death tucked in the University of Medicine courtyard.