Situated on the Right Bank, within a stone's throw of the Ile-de-la-Cite, the Louvre expanded according to the whim of successive French monarchs, and today it is one of the world's largest royal palaces. It is better known, however, for the great museum within its walls. The Grand Louvre project was designed to modernise and smarten it up, and the eye-catching glass pyramid erected in the open courtyard has renewed interest in the building's 'threatened' architectural beauty.
The Louvre Palace
The original castle was consistently extended westwards, away from the congested part of the city.
The Medieval Fortress
Built by King Philippe-Auguste at the end of the 12th century, the Louvre castle was just a massive keep surrow1ded by a wall and towers, designed as part of the city's fortifications. It became a royal
residence when Charles V extended the city further west and protected it with new fortifications. Remains of this fortress were discovered under the Cour Carn~e, and have been excavated recently as part of the Grand Louvre scheme (access through the museum).
The Renaissance Palace
Until the 16th century, the Louvre was neglected in favour of less austere residences in the Marais or on the Loire; I'hen Francis I had part of the obsolete rorlress razed, and in 1546 he
ol11l11issioned Pierre Lescot to build a
new palace. Lescot worked on it until his death in 1571, entrusting the decoration to the sculptor Jean Goujon.
The Tuileries
Catherine de Medicis, Henri II's widow, initiated the extension of the Louvre westwards. She commissioned Philibert Delorme to build a new palace close to the Louvre, known as the Tuileries. Superstition prevented the queen from settling in here - an astrologer told her she would die there. In 1871 it was burned down and had to be demolished.
The Galerie du Bord de l'Eau Catherine de Medicis had originally intended to link the two palaces by way of a long wing, but these plans were abandoned until Henri IV's accession to the throne. He completed the link in 1608 by having the GaJerie du Bord de l'Eau and the Pavillon de Flore built.
The Cour Carree
Louis XIII and Louis XIV concentrated their efforts on the Cour Carree. In
Francis I started the royal collection in the 16th century by acquiring 12 paintings by Italian masters, which included Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, still the most famous of the museum's art treasures. During the reign of Louis XIV, the king's minister, Colbert, practised a policy of
Meanwhile, the Academie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, founded in 1648, was already holding its annual exhibition in the Louvre and artists were granted lodgings in the palace. Shortly after the creation of the museum in 1793, works of art were brought back from Versailles, and later Napoleon and his successors continued to enrich the collections with Greek, Assyrian and Egyptian antiquities.
The Carrousel du Louvre
In order to avoid unnecessary delays, use the direct access from the Palais- Royal metro station to the museum through the new Carrousel du Louvre, a vast underground architectural complex that forms part of the Grand Louvre project and links the Jardin des Tuileries to the Louvre. It includes the Galerie du Carrousel, a wide alleyway lit at one end by an inverted glass pyramid and leading to the museum's entrance hall.
The museum today
The Louvre consists of three wings, Sully, Denon and Richelieu, which house the museum's seven departments identifiable by a colour code. The
collections are displayed on four levels, each divided into 10 arrondissements accessible by means of escalators from the underground reception area, where leaflets in English, including ground plans, are available to help you decide what you want to see. There are also maps and signposts throughout the museum. If you are looking for a particular work, ask a member of staff to direct you in case there has been a rearrangement of exhibits.
The medieval moat
The Sully escalator leads directly to rooms depicting the history of the palace and surrounding area; from there you can go to the Sully region, or walk round the moat of the medieval fortress buried under the Cour Carree. Objects found during the excavations include Charles VI's gilt helmet (l4th-century).
Oriental antiquities
This department houses archaeological finds from the valleys of the Euphrates and the Tigris, concerning mainly the Sumerian and Babylonian civilisations, the Elamite and Persian civilisations, the Phoenicians and the Assyrians.
i/,lc\yptian antiquities
'rltc great Sphinx in pink granite makes ,\ most impressive introduction to I\gyptian art, while the Seated Scribe, dal ing from around 2500 BC, and the Ililst of Amenophis IV from Karnak are 1>1 ri kingly realistic masterpieces.
{;reek, Etruscan and Roman IIlltiquities
You cannot visit the Louvre Museum without seeing the 2nd century BC
s ulpture of Venus de Milo, generally acknowledged as a perfect example of fcminine beauty.
Paintings
Several paintings by Leonardo da Vinci, Titian and Raphael are among I he most outstanding works of the Italian school. Flemish and Dutch painters include Rembrandt and Van
I yck. There is also a superbly dramatic
hrist en croix by El Greco. The French school is strongly represented by de la Tour, Poussin, Watteau, Delacroix and Gericault.
Sculpture
Of special interest are Les Nymphes by Jean Goujon, Les Chevaux de Marly by Guillaume Coustou, a copy of which guards the entrance to the Champs Elysees, several busts by Houdon, and the Esclaves by Michelangelo.
Objets d'art
The Crown Jewels, including the Regent, a 140-carat diamond, are the biggest attractions here. Among a wealth of other fine pieces are the Maximilian tapestries and furniture by Boulle.
oday, foreigners account for onesixth of the capital's population; thus, over the last few decades, the character of certain areas has drastically changed. Some minorities, such as the White Russians, are fully assimilated, even if they still get together on occasions. Others, however, live in enclaves that, over the years, have acquired a strong cultural identity.
The Jewish district is situated at the heart of the Marais, within a small quadrangle formed by rue de Rivoli, rue des Francs Bourgeois, rue Vieille-duTemple and rue de Sevigne. There has been a Jewish community in this area since the Middle Ages, but the arrival in 1962 of a great number of Algerian
Jews suddenly altered the east European flavour of the district. The rue des Rosiers is very picturesque, with its delicatessens, restaurants, felafel snack bars and old food shops turned into fashion boutiques.
During the 1960s, tower-block
flats mushroomed in the 13th arrondissement and, as a result, a large number of Asian immigrants, the majority of them Chinese, settled in the area surrounding the porte de Choisy. As a result, the avenue d'lvry is particularly lively with its cinemas, restaurants, supermarkets, and shops that look like pagodas.
Successive waves of immigrants, this time mainly from Africa, have settled in
the Goutte-d'Or district, just east of Montmartre, and now, more than 30 different nationalities cohabit in what must truthfully be called deteriorating conditions. Redevelopment is in the air, understandably opposed
by the locals, for what will become of the colourful little shops that do a roaring trade selling exotic groceries, junk jewellery and African fabrics?
This is one of the most authentic districts of Paris, with a wealth of 17th-century domestic architecture. It is also a lively area, where traditions are being rediscovered, and where variety and contrasts make strolling along its picturesque streets a real pleasure.
Against all odds
Only 30 years ago the Marais seemed to have irretrievably sunk back into its murky beginnings. The name means marshy land, and this is exactly what it was until, in the 13th century, various religious communities, including the Knights Templars, turned it into arable land. At the beginning of the 17th century, Henri IV had the place Royale (now the place des Vosges) built right
at the heart of the district, and the aristocracy promptly commissioned the most renowned architects to design the splendid mansions (hOtels) seen there today. This was the Marais' golden age. But then fashion changed and the district, deserted by the wealthy in favour of the Faubourg St-Germain, was taken over by shopkeepers and craftsmen, while the beautiful mansions gradually became dilapidated.
A new lease of life
In the early 1960s, the Ministre de la Culture, Andre Malraux, made the district a protected area and restoration work began immediately. The Marais assumed its cultural heritage while
of bing its inhabitants a new quality of life. Some hOtels were cleverly converted ;1110 nats or turned into museums, and
new shopkeepers moved in and set up smart boutiques. An artistic revival followed, which is still very apparent.
Interesting streets
It is certainly worth taking your time, and even losing your way in the side streets north of the rue des Francs Bourgeois. There are also lively streets, which you don't want to miss. Stretching from one end of the Marais to the other, the rue des Francs Bourgeois is a commercial street lined with many fine houses, boutiques, cafes and restaurants. The rue des Archives is well known for its leather goods and jewellery. The rue Vieille-du-Temple has an assortment of restaurants, cafes and quaint shops, and the rue des Rosiers is the picturesque main street of the Jewish Quarter. South of the wide rue St-Antoine, the area of rue St-Paul and the Village St-Paul is a must for antiques lovers.
Some beautiful mansions
The Hotel Carnavalet in the rue de Sevigne is a Renaissance mansion remodelled by Mansart in the 17th century. Madame de Sevigne lived in it for 20 years and wrote many of her famous letters there. It now houses the Musee de I'Histoire de Paris.
1\ 'I'OSS rue des Francs Bourgeois is the jl,Hil H6tel de Lamoignon, one of the 111.1 'SI l11ansions in the district.
1\ ( I he corner of rue des Archives and I \ It' des Francs Bourgeois, the Hotel de ,"BlIl>ise is an early 18th-century
1 \'Kidcnce, but its corbelled turrets are a 1\'lllinder of the original 14th-century 1II.InOr house. Since 1808 it has been the !I()l11e of the National Archives.
The H6tel de Sens, in rue du Figuier, I:. one of the few remaining medieval I'rsidences - it was built in the late-15th \ c'ntury. Notice the turrets and the heautiful courtyards. In rue des Archives, the H6tel Guenegaud, built in 1650, houses the Musee de la Chasse et de la Nature, which has a collection of ,II'I11S as well as pictures by Vernet, Oudry and Chardin, and tapestries based on the theme of hunting .
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St-Paul-St-Louis
This baroque church, which was completed in 1641, was modelled on the Gesu church in Rome. The interior is well lit and richly decorated; in the transept there is a Christ au Jardin des Oliviers by Delacroix.
This area of great architectural wealth is a fashionable residential district enlivened by a variety of small shops and restaurants, art galleries and craft workshops.
Allow 2 hours (excluding museum visits).
Begin from the place St-Gervais (metro Hotel de Ville). Facing is St-Gervais-StProtais, the oldest classical church in Paris.
1 Rue Franl;ois-Miron
One of the first roads to cross the
marshy area or marais, the street is lined with old houses of interest: Nos 11 and 13 are half-timbered, 15th-century houses; Nos 44 to 46 have splendid Gothic cellars; and further up, the 17thcentury Hotel de Beauvais (No 68) rang with Mozart's music when the young
The distinctive white outline of the Sacn~-Coeur basilica, visible from almost anywhere in the city, is the universally recognised symbol of Montmartre. The name Montmartre draws on people's imaginations to keep alive the memory of its heyday. For, unlike other districts, La Butte relies entirely on its past image for survival. Quite often it looks like a vast open-air theatre where the decor never changes and the same play is enacted every day.
TOULOUSELAUTREC
orn into the aristocracy and crippled at an early age, Toulouse-tautrec led a sad life made endurable by his talent and passion for painting. He portrayed scenes of Montmartre's nightlife, sketching its stars with unique realism.
The case of Montmartre is unique, for it was its picturesque rural atmosphere and its free and 'easy' life that caught the world's attention at a time when most cities were overwhelmed with industrial squalor. It had nothing to offer except its refreshing simplicity, and its artists. The artists are back and a few cafes and cabarets full of memories remain, but the heritage is very difficult to preserve in a rapidly changing city with a growing tourist trade.
The most interesting parts of Montmartre are today centred round rue Lepic and its market, as well as the place des Abbesses and the surrounding area. However, it is worth strolling along rue des Saules or in the place du Tertre: do it early in the morning or out of season if you want to avoid the crowds.
Bohemian life
It all began in the early 19th century, when a few artists and writers wishing to lead a freer life settled on the Butte:
Berlioz, Nerval and Heine were three of the earliest residents. After the FrancoPrussian war of 1870, Montmartre
dme the centre of Paris's bohemian 1111', inhabited by impoverished painters ,\lId poets, and visited by Parisians who IIIH'ked into the cabarets, cafes and illll\l;e halls.
i\ l the turn of the 20th century, the 1IIIlSl famous of these establishments wnc the Chat Noir and the Moulin Itllilge at the foot of the hill, the Moulin dl' Ia Galette halfway up in rue Lepic, La Illlnne Franquette at the corner of rue iI,'s aules and rue St-Rustique, and the I.upin Agile down on the other side of
I he h ill. Artists like Renoir, Van Gogh Iind Toulouse-Lautrec found their inspiration among the enthusiastic 'I)(:ctators and the colourful performers. They were succeeded by Utrillo, Picasso, lira que, Modigliani and many others. 'I'his lasted until World War I, when the urtists left for Montparnasse.
Musee de Montmartre
Number 12 rue Cortot is one of the oldest houses on the Butte, dating from l he 17th century. The museum depicts
l he history of Montmartre through mementoes of its most famous inhabitants.
Metro: Abbesses.
St -Pierre-de-Montmartre
This is one of the oldest churches in Paris, once part of the powerful Abbey of Montmartre. Built in the 12th century, it has an 18th-century fa\=ade. Inside there are some fine carvings on the Romanesque capitals, contrasting with the modern stained glass, as well as four marble columns, probably belonging to a Roman temple that stood on the site.
Cimetiere de Montmartre
Access to the cemetery is by a flight of stairs on the left of rue Caulaincourl,
at the end of the bridge as you walk towards the boulevard de Clichy. A k fOI' a map at the entrance. Many famous artists and writers are buried here, among them the novelists Stendhal <lnd Zola, the composer Berlioz, the po Is Heine and Vigny, the painter Degas
and, more recently, the film director Fran\=ois Truffaut.
Rue Caulaincourt. Metro: Abbesses or Lamarck -Caulaincourt.
Nearby
Sam'!-Coeur (see pIOO).
Musee de Montmartre 12 rue Cortot. Te/" 01 460661 11. Open: llam-6pm. Closed.' Mon. Admission charge. Espace Dali 11 rue Poulbot.
Tel: 01 426440 10 Open: 10am-6pm. Admission charge.
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