Pont Notre-Dame once had a housing problem.

In the early 16th century, this Seine crossing was lined on both sides with medieval houses, shops, and families, a miniature street suspended over the water, not unlike Florence's Ponte Vecchio. The weight of all that ambition eventually took its toll: the bridge partially collapsed in 1499, and the houses were cleared for good in the 18th century.

What remains is the quieter, open-span bridge you see today. It carries its own royal chapter, too. In March 1594, Henri of Navarre entered Paris and crossed Pont Notre-Dame before crowds who hadn't glimpsed a king in five years. He would go on to become Henri IV, the first of the Bourbon kings.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours use the bridge to trace this dynastic turning point, connecting the collapse of medieval Paris with the city's reinvention under the Bourbons.