As soon as they arrived in Paris on 14 June 1940, the Germans took over the luxury hotels and major monuments, turning them into the official headquarters of the various Nazi services. In just a few weeks, all the public buildings were taken over, profoundly transforming the capital's urban landscape. The Nazis also marked their territory with flags and signs set up around the capital. The road signs were written in German. Only small inscriptions allowed residents to read the name of their street in French.