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Home , Bois de Vincennes, Grand Synagogue of Paris, Palais Bourbon, Palais Brongniart, Place de la Bastille, Pont Alexandre III

HIGHLIGHTS OF A FASCINATING C ITY “Paris is always that monstrous marvel, that amazing assem- blage of activities, of schemes, of thoughts; the city of a hundred thousand tales, the head of the universe.” Balzac’s description is as apt today as it was when he penned it. The city has featured in many songs, it is the atmospheric setting for countless films and novels and the focal point of the French chanson, and for many it will always be the “city of love”. And often it’s love at first sight. Whether you’re sipping a café crème or a glass of wine in a street café in the lively Quartier Latin, taking in the breathtaking pano- ramic view across the city from Sacré-Coeur, enjoying a romantic boat trip on the , taking a relaxed stroll through the or appreciating great works of art in the muse- ums – few will be able to resist the charm of the French capital.

THE PARIS BOOK invites you on a fascinating journey around the city, revealing its many different facets in superb colour photo- graphs and informative texts. Fold-out panoramic photographs present spectacular views of this metropolis, a major stronghold of culture, intellect and savoir-vivre that has always attracted many artists and scholars, adventurers and those with a zest for life. Page after page, readers will discover new views of the high- lights of the city, which Hemingway called “a moveable feast”.

UK£ 20 / US$ 29,95 / € 24,95 ISBN 978-3-95504-264-6

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9 ABOUT THIS BOOK

Paris: the City of Light and Love. The French capital eries, the magnificent bridges and of course the has been praised in song, served as a backdrop for invite visitors to take memorable strolls films and plays, and inspired novels and plays more and experience the history and tradition. The than perhaps any other city in the world. The historic masterpieces in the set not only experts in center of Paris includes the banks of the Seine be- raptures; the is also a cultural tween and Pont d’Iéna as well as its magnet at the heart of a lively scene. In the Musée magnificent monuments, all of which are featured in Orsay you can admire a world-famous collection of the UNESCO World Heritage List. Notre-Dame on Impressionist paintings; in the Musée Rodin you the Île de la Cité, the Louvre and the Jardin des Tuil- will be fascinated by the impressive of

10 ABOUT THIS BOOK

Auguste Rodin. Elegant squares and broad avenues Paris claims to be the most French of all the cities in as well as romantic districts like Le Marais and the . At the same time it is the most international From the original settlement on the Île de Quartier Latin, the historic university district, form of all French cities – not only because of the many la Cité, the city on the Seine grew to become a the extremes in this expanding political, economic visitors who come here each year, but because Par- vast urban entity. “Province remains province; and cultural arena. And yet, the individual districts is, as a center of culture, intellect and lifestyle has it makes itself ridiculous when it attempts to can still be conveniently explored on foot. When your always attracted countless artists, scholars and imitate Paris,” observed Honoré de Balzac. feet ache from all the walking, you can take refuge in anyone hungry for a taste of life from another part of Even back in his day, it was here, in the heart the Métro, for it is said that no point in Paris lies the world. of France, that you could feel the pulse of the further than 500 meters from one of its stations. “Grande Nation”.

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“Nobody should presume to have a firm opinion ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, Jardin des Tuileries 68 about life, love or literature before visiting 14 Musée des Arts Décoratifs 70 Paris…” 72 Île Saint-Louis, Île de la Cité 16 Palais Royal 74 () The river, the goddess and its (beach) The Métro: An excursion into the Paris lovers 18 underworld 76 Above: Place Notre-Dame de Paris 20 Banque de France, 78 and The Hunchback of Bibliothèque Nationale de France: Previous pages: Notre-Dame 22 Site Richelieu 80 1 The star of the Louvre: “the” Mona Lisa Sainte-Chapelle 24 Palais de la Bourse/ 82 2/3 The “star” of the city: the Eiffel Tower 26 Place Vendôme 84 4/5 Rue Édouard Quénou in the Quartier Hôtel de Ville 28 Diamonds are a girl’s best friend 86 Latin Marais 30 La 88 6/7 Rue Norvins in , with a The secret capital of European Jews 32 Fauchon 90 view of Sacré-Cœur Aristocratic city palaces in Le Marais 34 Opéra Garnier 92 8/9 La Défense: high-rising new buildings Place de la 36 Napoléon III, Baron Haussmann and the and Mitterand’s cube, La “Born free”: The 38 redevelopment of Paris 94 Opéra Bastille 40 Printemps 96 Amélie and the others: Paris on the Galeries Lafayette 98 big screen 42 Paris arcades: “A stroll through the living 44 room” 100 The (starry) skies above Paris 46 Saint-Honoré 102 Musée Picasso 48 Très chic: Paris fashion 104 Musée des Arts et Métiers 50 Palais de l’Élysée 106 Centre Pompidou 52 108 Forum des Halles 54 110 Saint-Eustache 56 Pont Alexandre III 112 Le Louvre 58 Place de la 114 Masterpieces of the Louvre 64 Avenue des Champs-Élysées, 120 The secret of the Mona Lisa 66 Palais de Chaillot, Jardins du Trocadéro 122

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Palais de Tokyo/Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville Ahead of its time: “The Impressionist Eye” 168 Bibliothèque Nationale de France: de Paris (MAM) 124 170 Site François Mitterrand 220 Musée Rodin 172 Mitterrand and his buildings 222 Hôtel and Dôme des Invalides 174 126 Emperor of the French: Napoléon Bonaparte 176 The Eiffel Tower 178 ÎLE-DE-FRANCE 224 128 At the top in his time: 184 Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle 130 École Militaire 186 Basilique Saint-Denis 226 Institut du Monde Arabe, Mosquée de Paris 132 Musée du Quai Branly 188 Chantilly 228 The : Over 750 years of European The Paris World Expos 190 Malmaison 230 intellectualism 134 Île aux Cygnes 192 Louis XIV: “The Sun King” 232 Panthéon 136 Prototype of an absolute residence: Literature in the Quartier Latin: Château de Versailles 234 Shakespeare & Company 138 BEYOND THE CENTER 194 Parc de Versailles 240 Palais du Luxembourg 144 André Le Nôtre and the “Jardin Jardin du Luxembourg 146 196 à la française” 242 Saint-Sulpice 148 Paris train stations 198 Bois de , Château de Vincennes 244 Everything the heart desires: La Défense 200 246 Paris markets 150 Legendary Montmartre 202 Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte 248 Cimetière du 152 Sacré-Cœur 204 Château und Parc de Fontainebleau 250 The “other” couple: Jean-Paul Sartre and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec: Chronicler Warlord and patron of the arts: François I 252 Simone de Beauvoir 154 of Paris society 206 A question of attitude: Le Bistro 156 Of habitués, trendy districts and longings 208 Boulevard Saint-Germain 158 Saint-Ouen 210 Index 254 Chanson d’Amour: Bringing the soul to life 160 Canal Saint-Martin 212 Photo Credit, Imprint 256 The and the Cimetière du Père-Lachaise 214 “immortals” 162 Édith Piaf: The “Little Sparrow” 216 Musée d’Orsay 164 Parc de la Villette 218 Heralds of the modern age: Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh 166

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Two islands on the River Seine – the Île de la Cité Ages made the Île de la Cité the undisputed focal and Île Saint-Louis – form the heart of Paris. The point of political and religious power. Today, the Celtic Parisii people settled here around 300 BC, Right Bank (Rive Droite) is home to the Élysée and remained until the Romans came and took over Palace, official residence of the French president, the area. Construction of a royal palace and the as well as the Champs-Élysées, with its elegant Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris in the Middle boutiques and upscale clientele.

14 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE This early evening view from the Centre Pompidou takes in the illuminated city center and the eastern end of the Île de la Cité, with the majestic Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris. The island is connected to the smaller Île Saint-Louis by the Pont Saint-Louis.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 15 ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, ÎLE DE LA CITÉ

Originally, there were three islands in the River 18th centuries. In the mid-19th century, the poet Seine, which flows through the heart of Paris. The Charles Baudelaire wrote his weighty volume two smaller islands – the Île aux Vaches and the “Les fleurs du mal” (Flowers of Evil) in the Hôtel Île Notre-Dame – were connected in 1614, and in de Lauzun here. In more recent times, the Île 1725 the joint island was renamed Île Saint-Louis. Saint-Louis has had its share of noteworthy resi- While the Île de la Cité attracts visitors to its im- dents, including Georges Pompidou, the French portant historic monuments, people come to the president after whom the cultural complex was Île Saint-Louis to stroll through its tranquil named, film actor Jean-Claude Brialy, and singer streets lined with palaces from the 17th and Georges Moustaki.

16 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, ÎLE DE LA CITÉ

On the Île de la Cité, the world-famous Notre-Dame Cathedral rises majestically into the night sky (large picture below). The Île de la Cité, or “City Island”, is believed to be the oldest settled area in Paris; it is first mentioned as inhabited in 52 BC. Left: The , the oldest bridge in Paris, spans the Seine at the western tip of the Île de la Cité. A number of old boats and barges line the banks.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 17 THE RIVER, THE GODDESS AND ITS (BEACH) LOVERS

The Seine rises northwest of Dijon, in Burgundy, to this day, it was an important transport route – the world envelops us, where every You is a branch / and flows into the English Channel near , the city’s coat of arms still features a ship and its on which I hang as a leaf that hovers in silence.” in a delta crossed by three bridges. Its total length motto is “Fluctuat, nec mergitur” (shaken by the In 1991, UNESCO added the banks of the Seine in of 776 km (485 mi) makes it the second-longest waves, but it will not sink). That must be what Paul Paris to the World Cultural Heritage list. During the river in France after the Loire. As such, the Seine Celan was thinking when he wrote these lines: summer months, sand is spread here so that the has played an important role since the early days “Paris, the ship, lies at anchor on the glassy water / Parisians can enjoy a taste of “beach life” in the of European civilization. The Gallo-Romans even I sit at table with you and drink to you / I drink until heart of the city. There are even plans to transform worshiped “Dea Sequana” (goddess of the Seine), my heart darkens for you / until Paris swims on its the roads along the river banks, despite their heavy and for Paris, which owns the springs of the Seine tears / until it sets sail for the distant veil / in which traffic, into a pedestrian zone.

18 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE THE RIVER, THE GODDESS AND ITS (BEACH) LOVERS

The Île de la Cité and Notre-Dame de Paris sit in the river like a ship at anchor. The view from the Quai d’Orléans toward the Île Saint- Louis (left) offers a grand vista of the apse on the east side of the church. Below: The Quai des Orfèvres (goldsmiths’ quay), the center for jewellers in Paris during the 17th and 18th centuries, leads to Pont St-Michel, built in 1857 to replace an older bridge dating from 1378.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 19 NOTRE-DAME DE PAR IS

Notre-Dame de Paris – more accurately the tals, which represent the life of the Virgin, the life square in front of it – is not only the focal point of of St Anne, and the Last Judgement, are figures in Paris, it is the geographical hub of the whole the Gallery of Kings. These are reproductions, country. A metal plate set in the ground here however, as the originals were decapitated in the marks the spot from which every point in France is Revolution – a few of the heads are on display in measured. The western façade of this Gothic mas- the Musée de Cluny. The interior, partially rede- terpiece, completed in 1345 (the foundation stone signed in the 18th century, has an impressive, was laid by Bishop Maurice de Sully in 1163), has a solemn atmosphere that is emphasized when the wealth of sculptures. Above the three carved por- great organ sounds for services or concerts.

20 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE NOTRE-DAME DE PAR IS

The Gothic Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Paris dominates the dramatic view from the banks of the Seine (left). The distinctive towers of the cathedral, which Victor Hugo once called a “harmonious parts of one magnificent whole”, measure some 69 m (226 ft) high. In the center of the sanctuary is the main altar (below), raised on marble steps with the Pietà created by Nicolaus Coustou (1658–1733).

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 21 VICTOR HUGO AND THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE-DAME

In his novel “Notre-Dame de Paris” (1831), Victor phasis is really a eulogy of Gothic architecture, of Emperor III. His first stop was Brussels, Hugo (1802–1885) managed to craft an important which Hugo was an enthusiastic fan. “He who is followed by Jersey in the Channel Islands. He then monument to the medieval city. It was only later, born a poet will become an architect,” he once pro- lived on the island of Guernsey, from 1855 until his for the translation, that the book was renamed claimed. Born the son of a general, he travelled return to Paris in 1871. In his later years, he be- “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”. It has been extensively in his youth and grew up partly in Italy came actively involved in politics once again, and in filmed on several occasions since then, as well as and Spain. He was politically active his whole life 1876 was elected into the . Victor Hugo also adapted for the stage, but interestingly, the sad and was not afraid to confront injustices. In 1851, wrote numerous poems and successful plays. His saga of the hunchbacked Quasimodo is not the he fled the country after the coup by Louis work “Le roi s’amuse” (1832) provided the model main focus of the original novel. The central em- Napoléon Bonaparte, who then crowned himself for Verdi’s opera “Rigoletto”.

22 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE VICTOR HUGO AND THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE-DAME

France’s admiration for the writer Victor Hugo is today undiminished, as can be seen at his home on Place des Vosges, which is now a popular museum (below). The house provides interesting insights into the writer’s lifestyle; his literary was based at No. 21 Rue de Clichy (left on illustration by the Romantic painter Eugène Devéria for one edition of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”).

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 23 SAINTE-CHAPELLE

King Louis IX (1226–1270) had the “Holy Chapel” (250-ft) spire. The stained glass windows are the built on the grounds of his residence in just oldest in Paris, and of the 1,134 scenes covering an thirty-three months, between 1245 and 1248, as a area of 618 sq m (6,652 sq ft), an impressive 720 place of safekeeping for valuable Byzantine relics originals have survived; the rest were destroyed he had “collected”. These were then kept in the during fires in the 17th and 18th centuries. The upper part of the chapel, to which only the king sunlight that filters through them shines on four- had access, while the lower part was used by the teen Gothic pillars, each 22 m (72 ft) tall, which rise people at court. The church is 33 m (108 ft) long and in the upper chapel to form a blue, cross-ribbed 17 m (56 ft) high, and is surmounted by a 76-m-high dotted with golden stars.

24 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE SAINTE-CHAPELLE

The High Gothic Sainte-Chapelle is one of the most beautiful places of worship in France. When the sunlight shines through the elaborate tracery of the stained-glass windows, it creates iridescent patterns of light (below). The impression of space in the two parts of the church varies considerably: the lower church (left) is considerably darker than the upper church because of its smaller windows.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 25 CONCIERGERIE

Just like Sainte-Chapelle, the Conciergerie is also the steward of the royal palace, who exercised the part of the palace belonging to the Capetian rule of law on behalf of the monarch. The building (Merovingian) dynasty. The complex consisting of was thus also a prison in the Middle Ages. During three buildings was constructed by Philippe IV the Revolution it became infamous as the so-called (1285–1314, known as Philip the Fair) in the High “antechamber to the ”: Marie-Antoinette, Gothic style around 1300. At the end of the 14th Danton and Robespierre were all jailed in the Salle century, the first public clock was mounted on one des Girondins (former chapel), condemned to death of the round towers, the Tour de l’Horloge. La Con- in the Salle des Gens d’Armes (former dining room) ciergerie was the official seat of the “Concierge”, and led along the Rue de Paris to the scaffold.

26 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE CONCIERGERIE

On the western tip of the Île de la Cité, directly behind the massive arches of the Pont Neuf, is the riverside Quai de l’Horloge. It acquired its name from the imposing corner tower of the Conciergerie with the city’s first public clock (left). It is here that you now find the entrance to the building, which is a museum that also doubles as a venue for classical concert performances.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 27 HÔTEL DE VILLE

The Hôtel de Ville, the town hall of Paris, is a Eugène Delacroix, historian and writer Jules late-19th-century building that was designed in its Michelet, actor François-Joseph Talma, sculptor present form, the neo-Renaissance style, by ar- Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, Versailles garden architect chitects Théodore Ballu and Edouard Deperthes. André Le Nôtre, and . Since The previous building, a Renaissance palais, was 1977, it has served as the residence of the mayor destroyed during the uprising of the Paris Com- of Paris – before that the city was headed by a pre- mune in 1871. The façade of the current town hall fect, like all the other départements in France; is adorned with 146 statues representing import- only the individual actu- ant Parisian personalities, including painter ally had their own mayors.

28 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE HÔTEL DE VILLE

For centuries, executions were held on the square in front of the richly decorated town hall – François Ravaillac, who assassinated King Henri IV, was tied and quartered here in 1610. Today, friendlier entertainments take place, such as district fêtes, and in winter an ice- rink attracts young and old. The majestic hall inside (below) the City Hall is also used as a venue for cultural events.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 29 MARAIS

The street now known as Rue Saint-Antoine is Revolution, when large numbers of craftsmen one of the oldest in Paris. It was built in Roman settled in Le Marais, east of Beaubourg between times just slightly raised above the marshy dis- the Place de la République and the Place de la trict (Le Marais) to protect it from flooding. In the Bastille. The fact that it is one of the most 13th century, monks and Templar Knights settled desirable districts in the capital, with designer here and drained the surrounding land, making it boutiques, galleries, markets, and restaurants, is arable as well as suitable for construction. The due in part to the writer André Malraux, who had aristocracy later built magnificent mansions the area renovated during the early 1960s when here, but they were driven out during the French he was Minister of Culture.

30 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE MARAIS

Some 600 years ago, was still outside the city limits and accommodated the Jewish population. Today, there is no sign of the old rose bushes that gave this street its name, . Yet with its cobblestone alleyways and squares, tiny bookshops and kosher restau- rants, Le Marais still looks as if time has stood still for the past 100 years. Many artists and bohemians have also settled in the district.

ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE 31 THE SECRET CAPITAL OF EUROPEAN JEWS

Of the roughly 800,000 members of the Jewish the Rue des Rosiers. Le Marais is also home to the Hôtel Saint-Aignan, dating from the 17th century. community in France today, almost half live in Agudath-Hakehiloth (also called the The latter now houses a museum of Jewish art Paris. They have been drawn to the city on the Synagogue de la Rue Pavée), designed in 1913 by and history that also shows works by Modigliani Seine since the 13th century: initially Sephardim Art-Nouveau architect , who mar- and Chagall. However, the biggest synagogue in (descendants of Jews from Spain and Portugal ried a Jewish artist. It was burned down during the Paris is not in Le Marais, but on the Rue la Vic- until their expulsion in 1492 and 1531), and later German occupation and then rebuilt as a monu- toire in the 8th arrondissement. Consecrated in Ashkenazim (Jews from Eastern Central and Cen- ment after World War II. In the vicinity you will find 1874, the high vaulted roof of the neo-Roman- tral ). The heart of Jewish Paris beats in the kosher restaurants and food shops, Jewish pub- esque “Grande Synagogue de Paris” provides “” – the Yiddish name for the district around lishing companies and bookshops as well as the space for a congregation of 2,000.

32 ÎLE DE LA CITÉ, ÎLE SAINT-LOUIS, RIVE DROITE THE SECRET CAPITAL OF EUROPEAN JEWS

The inside of the “Synagoge de la Rue Notre-Dame-de-Nazareth” shines brightly during services (below). Dedicated in 1852, it is the oldest surviving synagogue in Paris. The Bar Mitzvah (from Hebrew meaning “Son of the Commandment”) is a rite of passage for Jewish boys that is usually held on the Sabbath after their thirteenth birthdays (left).

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