Chapter 1

The Project Gutenberg eBook of Historic Paris This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook. Title: Historic Paris Author: Jetta Sophia Wolff Release date: May 16, 2013 [eBook #42722] Language: English Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/42722 Credits: Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images available at The Internet Archive) *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORIC PARIS *** Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images available at The Internet Archive) Every attempt has been made to replicate the original book as printed. Some typographical errors have been corrected. (a list follows the text.) No attempt has been made to correct or normalize all of the printed accentuation of names or words in French. (etext transcriber’s note) HISTORIC PARIS BY THE SAME AUTHOR THE STORY OF THE CHURCHES OF PARIS [Illustration: LA TOUR DE L’HORLOGE, LES “TOURS POINTUES” DE LA CONCIERGERIE ET LE MARCHÉ AUX FLEURS _Frontispiece_] HISTORIC PARIS BY JETTA S. WOLFF WITH FIFTY-NINE ILLUSTRATIONS LONDON JOHN LANE THE BODLEY HEAD LIMITED NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY MCMXXI _The Mayflower Press, Plymouth, England._ William Brendon & Son, Ltd. TO LA FRANCE THE BEAUTIFUL--THE VALOROUS PREFACE This book, begun many years ago, was laid aside under the stress of other work, which did not, however, hinder the sedulous amassing of notes during my long and continuous residence in Paris. The appearance of the Marquis de Rochegude’s exhaustive work, on somewhat the same lines in a more extensive compass, took me by surprise, and I thought for a moment that it would render my book superfluous. The vast concourse of English-speaking people brought hither by the great war, people keen to learn the history of the beautiful old buildings they find here on every side, made me understand that an English book of relatively small compass was needed, and I set to work to finish the volume planned and begun so long ago. I had made the personal acquaintance and consequent notes of most of the ancient “Stones of Paris” before looking up published notes concerning them. When such notes were looked up, I can only say their sources were far too numerous and too scattered to be recorded here. I must beg every one who may have published anything worth while on Old Paris to receive my thanks, for I have doubtless read their writings with interest and benefit. But I must offer special thanks to M. de Rochegude, for--writing under pressure to get the book ready for press--his work as a reference book, while pursuing my own investigations, has been invaluable. To my readers I would say peruse what I have written, but use your own eyes, your own keen observation for learning much more than could be noted here. Look into every courtyard in the ancient quarters, look attentively at every dwelling along the old winding streets, and fail not to look up to their roofs. The roofs are never alike. They are strikingly picturesque. Old world builders did not work mechanically, did not raise streets in machine-like style, each structure exactly like its neighbour, one street barely distinguishable from the street running parallel or crossing it, according to the habit of to-day. The builders of _les jours d’antan_ loved their craft; every single house gave scope for some artistic trait. The roofs offered a fine field for architectural ingenuity: wonderfully planned windows, chimneys, balconies, gables are to be seen on the roofs often in most unexpected corners, in every part of the _Vieux Paris_. Look up!--I cannot urge this too strongly. And within every old _hôtel_--the French term for private house or mansion--examine each staircase. In the erection of a staircase the architect of past ages found grand scope for graceful lines, and exquisite workmanship. Thus walks even through the dimmest corners of _la Ville Lumière_ will be for lovers of old-time vestiges a joy for ever. This was an iconoclastic age even before the destructiveness of the awful war just over. Precious architectural and historical relics were swept away to make room for brand-new buildings. As it has been impossible during the past months to verify in every instance the up-to-date accuracy of notes made previously, it is probable that some old structures referred to in these pages as still standing may no longer be found on the spot indicated. But whether in such cases their site be now an empty space, or occupied by newly built walls, it cannot fail to be interesting as the site where a vanished historic structure stood erewhile. JETTA SOPHIA WOLFF. CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. THREE PALACES 1 II. AMONG OLD STREETS 22 III. THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF THE GREAT MARKETS 35 IV. THE PALAIS DE JUSTICE 45 V. THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE NATIONALE 51 VI. ROUND ABOUT ARTS ET MÉTIERS (THE ARTS AND CRAFTS INSTITUTION) 62 VII. THE TEMPLE 70 VIII. THE HOME OF MADAME DE SÉVIGNÉ 81 IX. NOTRE-DAME 86 X. L’ÎLE ST-LOUIS 92 XI. L’HÔTEL DE VILLE AND ITS SURROUNDINGS 94 XII. THE OLD QUARTIER ST-POL 112 XIII. La Place des Vosges 119 XIV. The Bastille 123 XV. In the Vicinity of Two Ancient Churches 126 XVI. In the Region of the Schools 137 XVII. La Montagne Ste-Geneviève 144 XVIII. IN THE VALLEY OF THE BIÈVRE 149 XIX. RUE ST-JACQUES 152 XX. LE JARDIN DES PLANTES 155 XXI. THE LUXEMBOURG 162 XXII. LES CARMES 168 XXIII. ON ANCIENT ABBEY GROUND 170 XXIV. IN THE VICINITY OF PLACE ST-MICHEL 181 XXV. L’ODÉON 184 XXVI. ROUND ABOUT THE CARREFOUR DE LA CROIX-ROUGE 186 XXVII. HÔTEL DES INVALIDES 190 XXVIII. OLD-TIME MANSIONS OF THE RIVE GAUCHE 194 XXIX. ANCIENT STREETS OF THE FAUBOURG SAINT-GERMAIN 203 XXX. THE MADELEINE AND ITS NEIGHBOURHOOD 208 XXXI. LES CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES 213 XXXII. FAUBOURG ST-HONORÉ 216 XXXIII. PARC MONCEAU 221 XXXIV. IN THE VICINITY OF THE OPERA 223 XXXV. ON THE WAY TO MONTMARTRE 227 XXXVI. ON THE SLOPES OF THE _BUTTE_ 232 XXXVII. THREE ANCIENT FAUBOURGS 236 XXXVIII. IN THE PARIS “EAST END” 243 XXXIX. ON TRAGIC GROUND 246 XL. LES GOBELINS 251 XLI. THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF PORT-ROYAL 256 XLII. IN THE SOUTH-WEST 260 XLIII. IN NEWER PARIS 263 XLIV. TOWARDS THE WESTERN BOUNDARY 269 XLV. LES TERNES 276 XLVI. ON THE _BUTTE_ 278 XLVII. AMONG THE COALYARDS AND THE MEAT-MARKETS 290 XLVIII. PÈRE-LACHAISE 292 XLIX. BOULEVARDS--QUAYS--BRIDGES 297 L. LES BOULEVARDS EXTÉRIEURS 309 LI. THE QUAYS 320 LII. LES PONTS 337 ILLUSTRATIONS La Tour de L’Horloge, les “Tour pointues” de la Conciergerie et le Marché aux Fleurs _Frontispiece_ PAGE Le Vieux Louvre 3 The Louvre of To-day 5 Palais des Tuileries 9 Palais-Royal 15 L’Église St-Germain-l’Auxerrois 20 Place et Colonne Vendôme 31 Portail de St-Eustache 37 La Tour de L’Horloge, les “Tours Pointues” de la Conciergerie et le Marché aux Fleurs 46 La Sainte-Chapelle 48 Rue Quincampoix 63 St-Nicolas-des-Champs 65 Rue Beaubourg 67 La Porte du Temple 71 Porte de Clisson 75 Ruelle de Sourdis 77 Hôtel Vendôme, Rue Béranger 79 Notre-Dame 87 Rue Massillon 89 Place de Grève 95 La Tour St-Jacques 97 View across the Seine from Place du Châtelet 99 Rue Brisemiche 101 L’Église St-Gervais 103 Hôtel de Beauvais, Rue François-Miron 105 Rue Vieille-du-Temple 109 Rue Éginhard 113 Rue du Prévôt 115 Hôtel de Sens 117 Rue de Birague, Place des Vosges 121 La Bastille 124 Rue St-Séverin 127 Église St-Séverin 129 Hôtel Louis XV, Rue de la Parcheminerie 131 St-Julien-le-Pauvre 133 Bas-relief, Rue Galande 134 Le Musée de Cluny 139 St-Étienne-du-Mont 145 Interior of St-Étienne-du-Mont 147 Rue Mouffetard et St-Médard 150 Jardin et Palais du Luxembourg 163 L’Abbaye St-Germain-des-Prés 171 Cour de Rohan 179 Rue Hautefeuille 183 Castel de la Reine Blanche 253 La Salpétrière 255 Rue des Eaux, Passy 271 St-Pierre de Montmartre 281 Vieux Montmartre, Rue St-Vincent 282 Rue Mont-Cenis: Chapelle de la Trinité 283 Vieux Montmartre: Cabaret du Lapin-Agile 284 Moulin de la Galette 287 Le Mur des Fédérés 295 Old Well at Salpétrière 311 Cloître de l’Abbaye de Port-Royal 315 Remains of the Convent des Capucins 317 Hôtel de Fieubet, Quai des Célestins 325 Quai des Grands-Augustins 333 Le Pont des Arts et l’Institut 338 Pont-Neuf 339 HISTORIC PARIS