1)The first public zoo – Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes – was created in Paris during the revolution. This happened as a result of the National Assembly demands that all privately held exotic animals be donated to the menagerie or stuffed, according to All About History.
2) Made popular during the French revolution, the guillotine wasn’t abolished until 1981 – when France got rid of capital punishment. However it was last used in 1977.
3) In the late 18th and early 19th century French citizens ate on average two pounds of bread each day. When the price of flour skyrocketed because of Louis XVI’s financial mismanagement, a loaf cost as much as a peasant would earn in a month.
Other strange Facts: All About History