Tag Archives: Paris History

Touring the Former Villages of Paris

Paris grew from its centre, around the Ile-de-la-Cité, outwards. Once walled, over the centuries the city burst beyond its boundaries and new fortifications would be built. As part of the vast mid-19th century urban renewal of Paris undertaken by Prefect Baron Haussmann and Napoleon III, in 1860 the space between Paris’s last pair of city walls was annexed. Amidst the fields and vineyards of this zone were a number of villages. Remnants of several of these remain and provide a fascinating look into the past. From Montmartre to the Butte-aux-Cailles, these charming village neighbourhoods are the perfect weekend outing.

Montmartre

The best known of Paris’s former villages, Montmartre is known for Sacré-Coeur and the nearby artist square, Place du Tertre. However, there’s much more to the neighbourhood. Once a working class village on the northern fringes of Paris, Montmartre started to draw artists in the 1870s thanks to its cheap rent and free-flowing joie de vivre. A visit around its back streets guides you past small houses, windmills and the former residents and art studios of late 19th and early 20th century artists including Renoir, van Gogh, Suzanne Valadon and Picasso.

Belleville

The most rebellious of Paris’s former villages, the neighbourhood of Belleville still attracts more alternative Parisians. Its proximity to the gypsum quarries located on this edge of Paris brought in a working class popular. French music legend Edith Piaf spent part of her childhood in the area and famously claimed to have been born on rue de Belleville (instead of in the nearby hospital listed on her birth certificate). Reasonable rents also drew in waves of immigrant communities, including Greeks, Armenians, Tunisian Jews, Moroccans, Vietnamese and Chinese. This has created a vibrant cosmopolitan community peppered with, art studios, inventive restaurants and a laid-back vibe. A popular place with street arts, look out for their creations on your way to the top of the Parc de Belleville, where you can admire one of the nicest views of Paris.

Butte-aux-Cailles

This village on a slight hill (or butte in French) in southeastern Paris developed around a vineyard that the area’s namesake, a certain Pierre Caille, bought in 1543. Today this small town ambiance still exists around a grouping of cobbled streets lined with relaxed bars and restaurants. You can soak up the countryside feel meandering the charming streets, like rue des Cinq Diamants, passage Barrault and rue Moulin des Près. You’ll eventually come to the place Paul Verlaine, the old main square of the village (pictured above). It’s one of the centres for street art in Paris, so look out for this along your way. You can end your stroll with a drink on rue de la Butte-aux-Cailles, its bars popular with students from nearby campuses of the University of Paris.

Passy

Now part of the chic 16th district, found across the river from the Eiffel Tower, this plain used to be owned by the lords of Auteuil and Passy. Villages grew up around both and there are remains here and there in the area. Track down the Maison de Balzac, a cottage turned museum where Honoré de Balzac lived for a time (more on it and other literary residences in this article). Then around the corner you can find rue Berton (pictured above). One of the narrowest streets in Paris and protected by high stone walls, it used to marked the border between the sprawling estates of Auteuil and Passy (the 1731 boundary sign is still posted). Poet Guillaume Apollinaire wrote about the lane in his 1918 book Le Flâneur des Deux Rives, describing it as “one of the most scenic corners of Paris.”

Les Batignolles

Until the French Revolution, the northwest section of what is now the 17th district, was one of the hunting grounds for Parisian nobles. In the early 1800s a village began popping up here, around the Place du Dr Félix Lobligeois. It encircles the neo-classical Église Sainte-Marie des Batignolles, built in conjunction with the square, and is fringed on the northside by the beautiful Square des Batignolles. Previously also home to the local town hall, the square can be your starting point for exploring this up and coming area, abundant in small designer shops, buzzing cafés and restaurants.

Charonne

Found to the east of Belleville, the former village of Charonne is one of the most charming relics of pre Haussmann Paris. This can be observed on the old “main street” of the village, Rue Saint-Blaise, and its parish church, the Eglise Saint-Germain de Charonne. The church itself goes as far back as the 12th century, but was remodelled in the 15th and 18th centuries. It sits above the village and also still has its former parish cemetery, only one of two that still exist (the other is next to Saint Peter of Montmartre). A walk down Rue Saint-Blaise, lined with cafés and boutiques, truly gives you a sense of make visiting a small French village.

Interested in exploring other unique places in Paris? Get inspired by these other articles from our blog:

Offbeat Historic Sites to Seek Out in Paris

Paris isn’t only about its world-famous sites like Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower and the Champs Elysées. In fact, the city has dozens, in not hundreds, or curious places which date for different eras of the city and tell its story. From the Medieval towers to the remnants of the Bastille fortress, here are some fascinating sites to take you off the beaten path in Paris.

The Medici Column

Many people are currently flocking to visit the newly (re)opened Bourse de Commerce, now home to the Pinault collection of contemporary art (more on it here), however, rising behind its dome is a very curious site. The area used to house a palace, the Hôtel de Soissons, which was inhabited by Queen Catherine de Medici after her husband King Henri II’s death in 1559. The Queen was very interested in the occult and she even called Nostradamus to Paris to advise her on the future. She had this 28-meter-high column built in 1575 as a the lookout point for her astrologer Cosimo Ruggieri. While its 145 steps are closed to the public, you can admire it from the ground level. Be sure to look out for its decoration of the royal couple’s emblem of an intertwined H and C as well as cornucopia and broken mirrors.

Address: behind 2 Rue de Viarmes, 75001 Paris

Tour Jean-sans-Peur

Tucked amidst the buildings of the busy rue Etienne Marcel is an out-of-place ancient tower. A rare medieval building in Paris, the Tour Jean-sans-Peur dates back to the early 1400s and is all that remains of the palace of the Dukes of Burgundy which once stood here. The 21 metre-high tower is also the tallest medieval civic building in the city. It’s open to the public and displays temporary exhibits on medieval themes.

Address: 20 Rue Étienne Marcel, 75002 Paris

Remains of the Bastille

Lots of people who come to Paris exit the Bastille métro station and Bastille fortress is. The symbol of the outbreak of the Revolution, the Bastille was gradually torn down and the smaller artefacts were sold off as collector’s items like pieces of the Berlin Wall. Many of the larger blocks of the fortress were used to build the Concorde Bridge, which crosses the Seine from Place de la Concorde to l’Assemblée Nationale. In the métro on the platform of line 5, there are relics of where the fortress stood and then there is a regrouping of one of the Bastille’s towers hidden in the shrubs of this little park near the Seine, the Square Henri Galli. Called the “Liberté” tower, it was uncovered in 1899 at the start of rue Saint-Antoine during the construction of the métro line 1 and then moved here.

Address: 9 Bd Henri IV, 75004 Paris

Gnomon, Saint Sulpice. PHGCOM / CC

Gnomon of Saint Sulpice

When Dan Brown published his bestselling book The Da Vinci Code in 2003, this lesser known Left Bank church was thrown into the spotlight. People from around the globe came to see the unusual obelisk he described as marking the Paris Meridian or “Rose Line. Although Brown’s facts weren’t entirely accurate, the object is indeed fascinating and historic. Built in the early 1700s, the or obelisk, or gnomon, was an astronomical instrument used to determine the date of Easter thanks to a shadow cast on the obelisk. When you’re visiting the church, which also happens to be the second largest in Paris after Notre Dame, be sure to view the wonderful paintings by Delacroix found in the chapel on the right of the entrance.

Address: Place Saint-Sulpice, 75006 Paris

Expiatory Chapel

This lesser known site located near the Madeleine Church is one of the most hidden and mysterious sites in Paris. The land around this small square used to hold the Madeleine cemetery. It was here where Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were first buried after their guillotining in 1793 in nearby Place de la Concorde. After the final defeat of Napoleon and the restoration of the monarchy in 1815, their bodies were moved to the Cathedral of Saint Denis (which houses the tombs of most French royals). In 1826 the cemetery was replaced by the Expiatory Chapel, a homage to the tragic royal couple, funded by their daughter, Marie-Therèse and the next king, Louis XVIII. In the crypt there’s a black and white marble altar sitting on the spot where the King and Queen’s remains were found. The chapel can be visited on weekends.

Address: 29 Rue Pasquier, 75008 Paris

Château de la Reine Blanche. Photo: Siren-Com/ CC

Le Château de la Reine Blanche

Called the Castle of the White Queen, this residence was built in 1290 by the Queen Marguerite de Provence, although it was named after her daughter, Blanche de France, who inherited the manor house. It was constructed next to what was Paris’s second river, la Bièvre, which is still flows underground. The small castle is privately owned and but can often be visited on the Journées du Patrimoine (European Heritage Days) held the third weekend in September. If you can’t make it for that event, you can get a good look at the outside of it from the street.

Address: 6 Rue Gustave Geffroy, 75013 Paris

Saint Sergius Orthodox Church and Theological Institute

One of the most curious places of worship in Paris is hidden down a verdant lane near the Buttes-Chaumont Park. Originally commissioned as a German Lutheran church, it was abandoned after WWI and converted into a Russian Orthodox theological centre and church in 1925. The gate is open during the day and so you can pop in to have a look at the exterior, but if you come on Sunday mornings, you can take a peek at the interiors during service.

Address: 93 Rue de Crimée, 75019 Paris. Website

Au Roi de la Bière

To finish on a fun note, we’re taking you to look at the most unusually looking fast-food restaurant in Paris. Now a McDonald’s, this building across from the Saint-Lazare train station was built as an Alsatian brasserie in 1892. After Alsace and Lorraine were annexed to Germany at the defeat of the French in the 1870 Franco-Prussian War, many residents loyal to France moved to the Parisian capital. They brought their beer brewing traditions with you, which led to the opening of brasseries across the city and Au Roi de la Biére, or “The King of Beer” in English, was one of these. Designed to look like an Alsatian half-timbered house, and decked out in beer steins and a statue of Gambrinus (the legendary King of Beer), since it was classified as a national monument in 1997 McDonald’s could move it, but had to leave its facade untouched. So if you go here for a Big Mac, order a beer to go with it!

Address: 119 Rue Saint-Lazare, 75008 Paris

Looking to do other exploring in Paris? You may like to discover other interesting places to visit in these articles:

From History to Writing, Our Favorite Paris Podcasts

Over the past few years podcasts have become increasingly popular. They are a wonderful way to learn or enrich yourself while on the go or multitasking. This flourishing has also led to a rise in Paris podcasts, ranging from history to current affairs and from French lessons to tips from writers. The following podcasts are ideal for prepping for living in Paris, discovering insightful things about its history and learning how to navigate the city.

Paris History and Current Life

The Earful Tower

Hosted by Paris-based Australian Oliver Gee, every week this podcast focuses on a France or Paris related subject ranging from Parisian doorways to unusual vocabulary. The show often has special guests who add their thoughts on that week’s topic. It’s a fun and engaging way to learn about Paris as well as the trials, tribulations and joys of living in the City of Light.

Paname

Created by actress, comedian and tour guide Amber Minogue, this podcast, bearing the nickname Parisians have for the city, covers a secret, lesser known topic in each episode. Well researched and presented in an engaging manner, it’s a deeper dive into Parisian history and important figures which have left their mark on the capital. Subjects have included Cardinal Richelieu, the guillotine, the Bastille prison and more offbeat topics like haunted chairs or immortal clockmakers.

Mapping Paris

Our cohorts at the University of London Institute in Paris have created this podcast which is produced by students pursuing its Urban History & Culture MA. “An auditory adventure of Paris”, each episode provides a new perspective on the sites of Paris and broadens listeners understanding of what Paris is today. The short episodes make for the perfect cultural break while in transit, perhaps to our Paris School!

The New Paris

If you are interest in learning more about today’s Paris, then tune into this podcast hosted by writers Lindsey Tramuta and Alice Cavanagh, The show is an audio extension of Lindsey’s book of the same name. Each episode covers a specific subject relating to how Paris is evolving in the 21st century and usually involves a special guest, from restaurant owners to writers.

Paris Underground Radio

Launched in autumn 2021, this is a great new Paris podcast network which brings together 12 podcasts on a range of topics including food and wine, real estate, events and history. If you’re looking for unique things to do in Paris, you might like to check out Don’t Miss This, a weekly show released on Sundays and showcasing cool events, exhibitions and more. For exploring the city, listen in to Paris Cachée, a show investigating hidden sites with fascinating or unusual history. For tips on understanding the French through language, listen to Navigating the French.

Writing & Creativity

Right to Write – Paris

This podcast interviews the writers who participate in the Paris Writers Group held every month at the American Church. They provide insight into writing strategies and discusses how they’ve found inspiration in the City of Light, a place which has inspired so many great writers over the years. You can focus on your own writing my pursuing our Master’s in Creative Writing in Paris.

The Feminist Book Chat Podcast

This bi-monthly podcast was born out of an in-person book club held founded by Lou Binns and Camille Lou at the famous Shakespeare & Company bookstore. Each episode revolves around a range of subjects from feminist literature to BIPOC feminism and queer culture.

La Vie Creative

Hosted by American expat and photographer Krystal Kenney, this podcast focuses on creatives in Paris and how the city inspires creativity. The weekly episodes feature artists, designers, writers and other personalities in Paris. She also hosts a side podcast, “History with a Hemingway”, co-hosted by Claudine Hemingway, a relative of Ernest Hemingway.

Learning French

Coffee Break French

This podcast is hosted by Mark, a Scottish native who teaches French, and is a great match for beginners. Mark helps makes French less daunting with his interactive lessons which cover useful basic vocabulary, grammar and more. It’s a fun way to get started with learning French!

Français authentique

If you already have a foundation of the French language, then try this podcast, hosted by Frenchman Johan. Each episode covers a different theme such as improving one’s pronunciation, expressions and language learning tips. They are also available in video form with French subtitles.

Happy Listening everyone!

Napoleon’s Paris, Eight Sites Linked to the Emperor

This year France will celebrate the bicentennial of the Emperor’s death, in exile on the Island of Saint Helena on 5 May 1821, with a range of exhibits and events. Although he is a controversial figure for more reasons than one, it is undeniable that Napoléon Bonaparte altered the course of French history and the country as a whole. Napoléon might have spent much of his 15 years in power trying to conquer Europe, however, he did leave his mark on the capital. This was often in the form of grand monuments to himself and his military victories, nevertheless, the city does owe a number of its greatest sites to the Emperor. Here is selection of initiatives and other sites connected to Napoléon in Paris.

L’Ecole Militaire. Photo: Jebulon / CC

L’Ecole Militaire

After initial studies at the military academy of Brienne, Bonaparte came to Paris in October 1784, at the age of 15, to continue his training at the Ecole Militaire. After a year, he left the academy as a second lieutenant in the La Fère artillery regiment. His military career continued to advance through the early years of the Revolution. His surpression of a royalist insurrection in 1795 shot Bonaparte to sudden fame and had him promoted to Commander of the Interior and of the Army of Italy. With his new position, he made the Ecole Militaire his headquarters.

L’Arc de Triomphe

The most famous site connected to Napoléon, and one of the most visited sites in Paris, is certainly this mammoth triumphal arch. After his victory at Austerlitz in 1806, the Emperor commissioned a number of commemorative projects to celebrate his military campaigns. A number of propositions were put forth for the largest of these monuments and, for a time, there were plans to construct a massive elephant fountain in the centre of Place de l’Etoile and at the end of the Champs Elysées. In the end, Napoleon’s love of the antiquities, especially Roman monuments and symbolism, won out. The 50-metre high archway, which was originally designed to commemorate those who fought and died in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, features sculptures by leading artists of the era. Only partially completed when the Emperor was ousted from power in 1814, the archway was finally completed in 1836, during the reign of King Louis-Philippe, just in time for Napoléon’s remains to pass beneath it when they were returned to France on 1840.

L’Arc du Carroussel

Despite its very central location, between the Louvre and the Tuileries Garden, this second archway built by Napoléon often gets overshadowed by its more famous bigger sister. Constructed between 1806 and 1808, it too commemorates the battle of Austerlitz and other Napoleonic military victories. It is adorned with pink marble columns, statues and commemorative friezes, although it’s the sculpture on the top that’s the most interesting. During Napoleon’s conquest of Italy, the Horses of Saint Mark’s Basilica, already spoils from the Venetian Republic’s attacks on Constantinople, were pillaged and placed atop the arch. After the fall of Napoleon, the French were forced to return the original and this copy was added in its place.

Colonne Vendôme

Another Roman-style monument, this gigantic column is modelled after Trajan’s column in Rome. Also commemorating the victory at Austerlitz, and placed in the prestigious Place Vendôme, the bronze column was made from the melted down canons captured from the Russians and Austrians defeated in the legendary battle. The base of the 44 metre-high structure are Napoleonic eagles, whereas traveling up it is the story of the battle, atop which is Napoléon, holding a miniature Victory in his hand. This is, however, a replacement of the original column which was toppled by Communards during the 1871 Commune de Paris revolt (more on this event in this article on the Commune).

Fontaine du Palmier

The largest of 15 fountains commissioned by Napoleon in 1806, it was designed to provide fresh drinking water to the city. However, in true Napoleonic style, it also honours his military victories. At the base of the fountain are four sphinxes, eluding to the Emperor’s Egyptian campaign, from where the water spurts into a round basin. Above these are laurel-laden eagles and an Egyptian style column rising in palms, which gives the fountain its name. It too is crowned by Victory, holding out more laurels and the names of various battles are listed around it. This fountain’s location is also significant, built on the former site of Le Grand Châtelet, a formidable fortress and symbol of L’Ancien Régime, destroyed just like La Bastille.

Église de la Madeleine. Photo: Jose Losada / Flickr

L’Eglise de La Madeleine

Although this is a Catholic church today, this Greek Temple-esque structure dominating Place de la Madeleine has had various inceptions. Prior to the French Revolution the building of a church dedicated to Mary Magdalene had begun on this site, a project abandoned during the turmoil and anti-religious times. The foundations and finished portico stood for over a decade before Napoléon decided in 1806 to convert the designs into a Temple to the Glory of the Great Army. Incomplete at the fall of the Emperor, the restitution of the Monarchy steered the building’s course back in the direction of a church. Nevertheless, in 1837 there was talk of turning the building into Paris first railway station, but Mary Magdalene prevailed in the end and the church was consecrated in her honour in 1842.

Place de la Bourse, Photo: mksfca / Flickr

Palais de la Bourse

Although it was decided to move the previous Stock Echanges prior to Napoléon’s reign, he gets the credit for bringing all of Paris’s stock trading under one roof. It’s known as the Palais Brongniart, in honour of its architect, Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, who was tasked by Bonaparte to design a structure worthy of representing France’s commercial power. Similar in appearance to La Madeleine, the rectangular neoclassical building is also surrounded a colonnade. With the shift of trading online, the building is now rented out for congresses and other events.

Musée-de-l'Armée-Tombeau-de-Napoléon-Eglise-du-Dôme-_-630x405-_-©-OTCP-DR

Tomb of Napoléon, Musée de l’Armée Photo: OTCP/DR

Les Invalides

When Napoléon’s remains returned to France in 1840, it was decided that his final resting place should be the Saint-Louis Cathedral, the Military church of the Les Invalides complex. Built under Louis XIV and designed by Jules Hardouin Mansart from 1677, at 107 metres, the cathedral’s dome is the highest in France and considered by many to be its most beautiful. Gilded in gold on the outside, it is deep in its crypt where the Emperor’s tomb is found, made of red quartzite and sitting on a green granite base. A visit to the tomb is included on entrance tickets to the Musée de l’Armée at the Invalides.

You can further learn about Napoléon in the exhibit dedicated to him taking place at La Villette from 19 May to 19 September, 2021, or by visiting the castles of Malmaison and Fontainebleau, two popular residences of the Emperor.

Alternatively, delve deeper into the history of the city’s art, architecture and film by pursuing one of our Paris Master’s Programmes.

Parisian History Focus: 150-Year Anniversary of the Paris Commune

The date of 18 March marked the 150th anniversary of the Commune de Paris, a two and a half month long insurrection which occurred in 1871, the last of France’s almost century of revolutions. It was sparked due to the instability which arose in the wake of the French defeat during the Franco-Prussian war and led to a power between the socialist “Communards” and the Republican Gard. The bloody episode in French history involved intense fighting in the streets of Paris and other deadly events. There are various sites around Paris which still bear witness to the Paris Commune. Below are some of the more relevant or visually evocative examples of these.

Plaza in front of Sacré-Coeur

The government’s attempt to remove the canons, placed in front of Sacré-Coeur to defend the city during the Franco-Prussian war, was a key factor in the outbreak of the insurrection on 18 March 1871 (see above photo). There were further canons in Menilmontant, Place des Vosges and other venues around the city.

Square Louise Michel

Although this small square at the bottom of Sacré-Coeur was created in the wake of the defeat of the Paris Commune, in 2004 it was renamed after Louise Michel. A school teacher in Montmartre, she became one of the best known figures of the Paris Commune.

Le mur des Fédérés – Cimetière du Père-Lachaise Photo: Roger Viollet

Le mur des Fédérés – Cimetière du Père-Lachaise

There is a memorial here on the spot where one-hundred and forty-seven fédérés, combatants of the Paris Commune, were shot at the foot of the wall and thrown into an open grave at the end of the revolt on 28 May 1871.

Villa des Otages (85 rue Haxo, 75020)

A café-concert at this address had been converted into a command post. On 26 May 1871, 52 hostages from the La Roquette prison, including 34 gendarmes and 11 Jesuits, were taken here and executed. There is a commemorative plaque labeled “villa des otages” on the outside of the building and a memorial is dedicated to them at the nearby Belleville cemetery.

Commune Graffiti in Eglise Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis Photo: Un Jour de Plus a Paris

Église Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis

Few people know that this beautiful Baroque church in the Marais contains an interesting piece of Commune graffiti. Look for the second pillar on the right when entering the church and you can see the faint words “République française ou la mort” (French Republic or death) which were not able to be completely removed.

Hotel de Ville

The Communards set many buildings on fire during the rebellion. Some of these were so badly damaged that they were not rebuilt, like the Tuileries Palace and a palace which stood on the site where the Musée was later built. L’Hotel de Ville, Paris’s City Hall, was among the structures damaged yet restored.

Destruction of the Vendome Column

Colonne Vendome

A group of Communards, led by painter Gustave Courbet, torn down and badly damaged the column erected by Napoleon Bonaparte in the early 1800s. The artist was later forced to pay for it to be rebuilt, which led to his bankruptcy and exile to Switzerland.

You can learn more about the revolt in this recent article on the BBC or in the academic publications on the Digital Libraries site. As it is quite complex you can also get a better grasp of it via this useful Paris Commune timeline.