ANNE's and VINCENT's walks around Montmartre

Paris is our city and our Love but we are in fact citizens of the Free Commune of MONTMARTRE a village inside Paris.
We feel very linked with this place where was borne a lot of new ideas prohibited by the rulers of many historic periods. T
The history of Montmartre (Mont of Martyrs) starts in the 2nd century when Saint Denis, defending the very advanced theory of universal love and tolerance was killed by the Romans and had to walk from Montmartre till the town, now called Saint Denis, with his head in his hands. In 19th century during the Commune of Paris, the citizens of Montmartre defended on barricades the ideas of universal Democracy against the Autocratic regime of Versailles. In the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th the citizens of Montmartre created the Impressionism then the Cubism and the Surrealism and defended a new idea of art and generally a new look at the human race.
Walking over the hill we discover so many places and signs of these events, we want to share it with you.



So Join Us in Montmartre , you are invited.!

 

This walk is around Montmartre in October 2002

1. The History of Montmatre

55 Montmartre was a village just to the north of Paris. The latter was city dominated by the Romans some time around the year 55 AD who built a temple at the top of the hill dedicated to the god of war Mars.

100 The name of the village is a curious one as it seems to come from the roman words for hill and martyrs "mons martirium". The reason for this being that, apparently, a burial ground full of Christian martyrs' bones was found up there.
250 Around the year 250AD St. Denis brought Christianity to Paris and was thanked by being tortured "by the grill" followed by decapitation on the hill overlooking the city . Apparently the saint picked up his head and walked to the place now known as St. Denis.
1000 Testimony of the early Christian influence may be found in what remains of the church of St Pierre de Montmartre (st. Peter's), near Sacré Coeur basilica which dates back to the 12th century - less than 100 years after the Norman conquest of England! It is one of the oldest if not the oldest churches in Paris: older than the church of St. Germain des Pres in the 6th arrondissement, near the cafe Les deux Magots. You can still see the Gothic style elements although bits built a couple of centuries ago diminish the effect somewhat.

1534 Here Ignatius Loyola and seven companions took the vows that lead to the creation of the Jesuits. A large nunnery once stood on the hill. For many years (still today) the vineyards and windmills gave Montmartre an air of the country in the middle of Paris.
1851 The montmartre of today is very much what was built up in the 19th century during the reign of Napoleon III (grandson of Napoleon). It was he who declared war on the Prussians and so quickly lost (1870). However, much of what is to be seen in the way of city urbanisation and reforms is thanks to him.
Napoleon III got Baron Haussmann to destroy the small alleys and poorer areas which caused so much discontent and move the inhabitants further out. I believe the 9th and 18th arrondissement are an example of this rebuilding or more specifically the large boulevards and the Opera. Les Halles market (not in Montmartre) is also an example. He was keen to avoid the insurrections and revolutions which had beset Paris, through reform. This area, particularly the 9th arrondissement, later attracted the headquarters of many banking and financial institutions of the last century.
However, it is even said that one of the points of the wide and straight boulevards was to prevent a repeat of the peasant barricades as well as afford the military a good cannon shot should the need arise again. Napoleon III was taken by the Prussians but his vast urban reforms remained.
Planners to this day expect architectural work in the 9th and 18th arrondissements to remain to the original Napoleon III style
   
1871

The beginning of the Paris Commune (1871) is apparently marked by an event by which the peasants of Montmartre took over 150 cannons taken from the Prussians to the top of the hill. The government declared its ownership over them and sent the military to get them at which point the peasants revolted, killed the commanding officers and began their revolt.
1876 Montmartre's Basilica of Sacré Coeur was built here from 1876 to 1912 by public subscription as a gesture of expiation after the defeat of 1871 in the Franco-Prussian War. Its white dome is a highly visible landmark in the city where just below it, artists still set up their easels each day amidst the tables and colorful umbrellas of Place du Tertre.
1900

Perhaps what we all know and remember Montmartre for is owed to artists and artistic movements at the turn of the 20th century. As well as depicting the area, the geniuses of the artistic revolution depicted mood and life in the area. A new view of the world with a different social attitude - Impressionism. It would be impossible for me to write about such matters in just a couple of paragraphs but I would pay particular attention to the following elements if you are interested:
Many artists lived and worked around the Montmartre area, in different studios according the level of income they afforded. The "Bateau Lavoire" so named because of its shape like a boat was burned down not so long ago but I believe was rebuilt. Picasso is said to have painted the fist cubist work there - Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.
Another studio worthy of note is on rue Cortot 12. Where there is now a museum and association dedicated to the old montmartre.
Toulouse Lautrec - painted much about the night life and cabaret around the 9th and 18th arrondissements. He painted many of the advertising posters for the Moulin Rouge and Cabaret.
Amedeo Modigliani - came from Livorno in Italy and was pretty much ignored until recently. He developed pretty much his own style and is particularly well known for his geometric stylisation of the (human) form. Like Picasso he was strongly influenced by African art and statuettes and this is plainly seen in his portraits. He was also a good friend of the scluptor Brancusi.
Picasso - the fewer words I write the better. He worked his way through about as many different artistic styles as I've had hot dinners. Les Demoiselles d'Avignon is perhaps the most well known because of its meaning for cubism.
Degas - we all know and love his work. He's buried in the Montmartre cemetary I believe!
Van Gogh was also here. Apparently he lived on Rue Victor Masse. Other sources have told me he lived on Rue Lepic 54.

 

 
   
 
Some other events from the history of Montmartre
  Probably, a very special atmosphere of the hill, with Paris on its foot, marvellous landscapes all around, a lot of nature, plenty of monuments and souvenirs made from Montmartre a privileged place for philosophers, artists, inventors. As you will see in the history table, here was borne the west European Christian church with first Christian village (around 80 AD), here operated and suffered Saint Denis a revolutionary creator of the French Church, here was initiated the Jesuit ideology and built the first Jesuit nunnery , here philosophers worked on bases of our modern democracy and the American Constitution , the French Revolution , then the most advanced idea of democracy with the Commune de Paris , here is borne a big part of the bases of the modern art with Impressionists , Cubists, Dadaists, here lived and worked some of grade, advanced writers as Boris Vian and film Directors …
Today Montmartre is still the place where these people like to be . So be one of them , come over here.

2. Rue Caulaincourt

We live in Rue Custine and always start the walk around Montmartre from Custine and Caulaincourt

 

 

3. Rue Saint Vincent (Vincent is also my first name)


 

 

 

4. Le Lapin Agile


  • Famous Cabaret , meeting room of all the local artists

  • Lapin à Gilles, in fact


5. The Montmartre vineyard

 

  • The last square of the Jesuit vineyard (16c)

  • The only vineyard in Paris

  • Behind the vineyard the Museum of Montmartre , also House of Utrillo

  • Nature is as good artist as Lautrec, Picasso Ernst and other inhabitants of this site once was.

 

6. The SacreCoeur

 

  • I will have to replace these pictures with more sunny views, it is a bit sad.

  • Back view of the Sacre Coeur

 

 

7. The Village

 

  • Green grass and trees, good air, parks, no cars, no noise, small nice houses : this is Montmartre : a village in the middle of Paris.

  • The only place like this in Paris

 

 

8. The Wall

 

  • Art and beauty every ware: it is also Montmartre

  • Here you can even try to cross the wall. But be careful , the tourist from the 19th century is still there.

 

9. Villa Leandre

 

  • One of villas of Montmartre : small private street with small houses

  • This one is one of most expensive places in France (about 10kEuro per m2)

 

10. La folie

 

  • Montmartre is plenty of pedestrian streets, in the morning they are empty and this is the best moment to discover it alone. After, during the day many tourists walk over here

  • To stay in Montmartre let you a unique chance to see the down and the sunrise from Montmartre , over Paris : it is fantastic.

 

 

11. Les Fusains

Here we are. Les Fusains is a summary of all the aspects of Montmartre: it is a Village with its small houses and ateliers, it is a Park with many nice trees and flowers, it is a house of famous artists, it is a Historic Monument as globally Montmartre is.

  • Les Fusains is a harmonised mixture of typical architectures of Montmartre from several periodes

  • Some of buildings was directly transfered here from the place of the Universal Exhibition in 1889.

Many small details in les Fusains are very original , just be curious

 

 

  • Trees Doors Ateliers ...

  • Nature changing colours on all periods

  • Souvenirs of famous artists who once lived and worked in these ateliers and in this garden