Montmartre, in Paris, is much more than a neighborhood: it is a myth and, by all means, a must-visit in the City of Light. A quintessential bohemian quarter, the Montmartre hill was the cradle of many of Europe’s finest Impressionist painters, and it teems with arts, culture, and history.
Located on the right bank of the Seine, monuments such as the Basilica of Sacré Coeur await you in Montmartre, as well as colorful cafés and lively alleyways to lose your way in and, of course, cabarets such as the famous Moulin Rouge.
Tag along with us on a journey through time across Montmartre!
Rural Montmartre
It is known that Montmartre was already a noteworthy location back in the Roman Empire, when it was mentioned as Mons Martius, or “mount of Mars”. The legend assures that it was there, on top of that hill, where Saint Denis, the Christian bishop of Lutetia (Roman Paris), was beheaded in the 200s.
During the Middle Ages, Montmartre was an independent town from Paris in which vineyards, orchards, and lush gardens could be found, as well as countless mills providing the city with different kinds of flour. Many of its inhabitants lived at the service of the Royal Abbey of Montmartre, a Benedictine foundation from the 1100s whose lands and premises took up most of the hill.
Both this Royal Abbey and the nunnery that had flourished beside it were laid to waste during the French Revolution in order to make room for the gypsum mines and the quarries which were put in place.
By then, Montmartre was already located right on the city boundary of Paris, and it was appointed as a commune in 1790, as the Place du Tertre was proclaimed as its center. It would not be until 1860 that Montmartre became a quarter in Paris.
A decade later, this hill would be the epicenter of the Paris Commune, a relevant revolutionary episode which took place in 1871.
Finally, in 1876, the construction of the “cherry on top” crowning the Montmartre quarter got under way: the Basilica of Sacré Coeur.
Montmartre was ready for the arrival of the bohemian artists who would infuse it with the flair, color, and character that can be enjoyed today throughout this neighborhood in Paris!
The Arrival of Artists
Why did Belle Époque (1872-1914) artists start gathering precisely in Montmartre, out of all neighborhoods in Paris?
The answer lies in the economy: Montmartre was a very inexpensive quarter to rent a place in. Little by little, the rumor spread that not only could a bohemian artist live off a meager handful of francs in that neighborhood, but the place was also brimming with life, hustle and bustle, nightlife venues, and heaps of other artists to mingle with.
Renoir, Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, Picasso, Modigliani, Matisse, Degas and many other painters, sculptors, poets, and musicians soon turned Montmartre and its cabarets into a humble artistic sanctuary which would go down in history.
Montmartre During the Belle Époque
Therefore, during the late 1800s, the Montmartre quarter was known for its cafés, its lively taverns, its liberal nightlife, and especially for cabarets such as Le Chat Noir (founded in 1881), where the famous pianist Éric Satie worked for a living.
The Moulin Rouge (founded in 1889) was its proud successor and, needless to say, the most famous cabaret in the world. Being the preferred meeting point for the most popular artists at that time, it would also be the cradle of the cancan dance.
Every night, the most conspicuous personalities of that era met up there, and extravagant and flamboyant shows were produced, luring visitors from all over Europe.
Toulouse-Lautrec would become famous for crafting posters for the Moulin Rouge!
Montmartre During the 1900s
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, most of the bohemian artists still remaining in the neighborhood left the place, and one of the last meeting points standing was the R-26 salon, serving as a venue where personalities such as Josephine Baker or Le Corbusier met.
After the world wars, the Montmartre quarter was repurposed for tourism, placing its trust in its colorful and bohemian allure, in the memories of the decadent nights at the Moulin Rouge, in the reminiscence of the jaw-dropping artists that visited it, and in monuments as spellbinding as the Basilica of Sacré Coeur.
Present-Day Montmartre
Nowadays, the visitors walking across Montmartre can find a delicate balance between tradition and modernity in this place and, above all, a strenuous attempt at preserving the quarter’s charm and strong artistic identity in the face of mass tourism.
To serve as an example for this, besides its most famous monuments, the Place du Tertre, the cabarets, and the Pigalle neighborhood, the visitor can drop by:
- A traditional vineyard in the Rue Saint-Vincent and the wild garden located in that very same street.
- The house and museum of Renoir, former home of the artist.
- The Montmartre Cemetery, where painters such as Degas are buried.
- Its cobblestoned alleyways, ideal to wander through without rushing, enjoying its cafés and bistros.
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The legacy of Montmartre’s bohemian artists and their influence in popular culture is undeniable!
As a symbol of arts, freedom, and creativity, this quarter and its thrilling history have been portrayed in dozens of films such as:
🎬 An American in Paris (1951)
🎬 Amélie (2001)
🎬 La Vie en Rose (2007)
🎬 Moulin Rouge (2001)
Talking about present-day Montmartre is to recreate an entire series of images, sounds, and sensations in our minds that now belong to all of us:
🎶 The voice of Edith Piaf singing in Pigalle.
🎶 The posters by Toulouse-Lautrec.
🎶 The ambience of the cabarets and the Belle Époque artists.
🎶 The powerful love story in Moulin Rouge.
👉 You have a thousand reasons to come and discover the stories and legends of the Montmartre quarter!
