The Hotel Britannique is born, right in the heart of the 1st area of Paris. The Hotel is situated some 100 meters from the oldest square of  the right bank, 20 Avenue Victoria.

During the middle of the 19th Century, under the reign of Napoléon the III, the Baron Haussmann was hired to modernize Paris streets. Haussmann began his campaign ‘Paris embellished, Paris enlarged, Paris sanitised’ by clearing away any confusing city path, making way for domineering and uniformed straight roads. X marked the spot at Les Halles, just 400 meters from the hotel which he believed to be the ‘belly of Paris’ and endeavored to design the rest of his new city around it.

In 1854, the Avenue Victoria had seen its early days under the title of ‘Boulevard de l’Hôtel de Ville’. This would be replaced one year later by ‘Avenue Victoria’, in honor of the British Queen’s visit to the town Hall of Paris on the 23rd August, 1855. Queen Victoria had been the distinguished guest of Napoléon III at the 1855 Paris Universal Exhibition. This moment marked the beginning of the cordial agreement between the two Empires.

It is at Number 20 of this avenue of scarcely finished buildings that the Perret-Baxter family chose to establish the Hotel Britannique.

« Presented to Monsieur et Madame Perret, Hotel Britannique Paris, by a few Scarborough friends, for their kind attention during a visit to Paris ».

1870

The fall of the Second Empire – Napoléon III is denounced and the Prussians occupied Paris

1871

The Paris Commune, an attempt of proletarian revolution. Massacre of the Communards by the Versaillais. Paris burning in may.

Rivoli Street situated some 100 meters from the Hotel Britannique

1879

The construction of the first telephone network begins

1886

The celebration of the centennial of the Declaration of Independence in the United States of America.

« Liberty enlightening the world », better known as the Statue of Liberty, was offered to the States by France in 1886, as a sign of friendship to celebrate the declaration of American independence. The inauguration of the statue was celebrated on October 28th 1886 in the presence of the president of the United States, Grover Cleveland.  The idea came from the French legal expert and professor, Edward of Laboulaye in 1865, under Napoléon III:  « I will fight for liberty, I will call for the free people. I will try to glorify the republic over this country, and I will continue until that day arrives in my country ». The gift of the Statue of Liberty to a Republic, located on the other side of the Atlantic, played an important role in the fight for the maintenance of the IIIrd Republic.

The Statue of Liberty would go on to become a national symbol for the United States, representing the liberty and emancipation of man with regards to oppression.

1887

The building of the Eiffel Tower commences

1889

The celebration of the centennial of the 1789 French Revolution. Inauguration of the Eiffel Tower.

The french citizens living in USA reciprocates the offer of friendship by donating a representation of the Statue of Liberty. The statue was also given to the French at this moment in history in order to commemorate the centennial of the French Revolution. One can read on the plaque « 5th JULY 1776 - 14th JULY 1789″.  It was inaugurated by the President Carnot on July the 4th 1892, 6 years after the donation of the « New York » Statue of Liberty. In 1937, during the Universal Exhibition, Bartholdi’s wish was finally granted and the positioning of the French statue was changed in order to face towards New York.

1894

The Sorbonne holds the « Congress for the restoration of the Olympic Games »

1898

A census is taken counting some 94 255 bicycles and 89 automobiles in Paris

1900

The Universal Exhibition and the Olympic Games at Paris. The first metro line appears (Vincennes – Porte Maillot). This is also the beginning of the period of progress named ‘La Belle Epoque’

1910

The great flood of Paris. Somewhat slightly elevated, the area surrounding the Hotel Britannique is left surprisingly untouched despite its close proximity to the Seine

1914

The beginning of the First World War and the end of the ‘Belle Epoque’. The Hotel Britannique opens its doors to the American-English Quakers, providing mutual aid for those in need

A part of the Hotel Britannique, dedicated to the Quakers

1920

The Christian Society of Friends, also known as the Quakers, establishes its first official french headquarters in Paris at the Hotel Brtitannique. The lasting documentation of this period tells us that the Perret-Baxters had great sympathy for the friend’s plight which was reciprocated with a commemorative plaque, still standing in the hotel lobby today.

« This Hotel, during the great war of 1914 – 1918, housed the Quaker mission of the Friends Society and gave aid to the population and reconstructed regions touched by the war. During the years 1914 – 1920 more than a million volunteers, English and American and both women and men, took part in this cause and passed through the hotel. The red and black star, the sign of the mission, was first seen in 1870-1871 by the members of a similar mission sent to France by the Quakers in order to help the victims of this war ».

The movement founded by the descendants of the Anglican Church during the 17th Century is documented in Voltaire’s ‘Philosophical Letters’, published in 1734 :

‘I believed that the doctrine and the history of such extra-ordinary people were worthy of curiosity. To find out about them, I visited one the most eminent Quakers in England (Andrew Pitt, a linen draper from Hampstead) who had been in commerce for thirty years, but had decided to limit his wealth and wants, and had retired to the countryside close to London. I went to seek him out in his retreat which was a small house, well-built and clean and without ornaments.
The Quaker was a fresh-faced old man who had never been ill, because he had never known passions or intemperance. I have never seen in my life a nobler or more engaging countenance than his. He was dressed, like all those of his religion, in a plain coat without pleats in the sides or buttons on either the pockets or the sleeves. He was wearing a large hat, with turned down brim, like our clergy. He received me with his hat on his head, and came towards me without the slightest inclination of his body, but there was more politeness in the open, humane expression on his face than in the custom of drawing one leg behind the other, and carrying the head-covering in one’s hand.’

“Our apparel is also somewhat different from that of others that it may be a perpetual warning to us not to imitate them. Others wear the badges and marks of their several dignities, and we those of Christian humility. We fly from all assemblies of pleasure, from diversions of every kind, and from places where gaming is practised; and, indeed, our case would be very deplorable, should we fill with such levities as those I have mentioned the heart which ought to be the habitation of God ».

« We never swear an oath, not even in a court of law. We think that the name of God ought not to be prostituted in the miserable squabbles of men. When we are obliged to appear before a magistrate on someone else’s account (for law suits are unknown amongst Friends) we affirm the truth by a « yes » or a « no ». The judges believe us on our simple word, whilst so many other Christians perjure themselves upon the Gospels »……

« And when, after a victory is gained, the whole city of London is illuminated; when the sky is in a blaze with fireworks, and a noise is heard in the air, of thanksgivings, of bells, of organs, and of the cannon, we groan in silence, and are deeply affected with sadness of spirit and brokenness of heart, for the sad havoc which is the occasion of those public rejoicings. »

Opposing the war, the Religious Society of Friends offered their generous services to the hospitals during the World War I, believing that God is charitable and man must be also.

1918

The end of the war. After the end of the conflict, a generation dreaming of a new world proclaims ‘never again’

1920

The beginning of the ‘Années Folles’. The utopian ideals of the 19th Century gave way to individualism and extravagance. It’s during this period that Paris saw the emergence of  art movements such as Surrealism, Dada and Art Deco. It is also at this time that the American writer Henry Miller would call the crossroads of Vavin-Raspail-Montparnasse « the navel of the world »

1924

The Olympic Games

1927

Charles Lindbergh receives a hero’s welcome after traversing the North Atlantic

1928

The Inauguration of the tennis stadium Rolland-Garros

1931

The first television show

1937

Universal Exhibition

1940

3rd of June, the Nazis bombard Paris: 250 deaths

1943

3rd of September, Allied bombardment: 400 deaths

1944

21st of April, Allied bombardment: 600 deaths. 19th of August, the liberation of Paris

Luckily Hotel Britannique’s treasure escapes the Nazi’s robbery!

During the four years of Nazi occupation, the owner of the Hotel Britannique – a descendent of the family Perret-Baxter, founders of the Hotel, had taken care to bury his valuable treasure in the ground of the hotel’s vaulted cellars. And what a treasure ! Dozens of bottles of vintage Sauternes wines aged from the beginning of the century and bottles of Bourgogne, dating from the 20s. To celebrate the liberation of Paris (and the bottle’s liberation from the ground) certain were opened and, undoubtedly, greatly appreciated. However a great number were preserved even into the 80s. The current owner of the hotel remembers to have had the great honour to taste, in 1983, a bottle of Vosnes-Romanée aged 60 years. That is an experience that one never forgets.

1947

The first fashion show (Christian Dior)

1968

The revolution of spirits tumbles Paris.

1977

8th December, the opening of the metro/train station RER Chatelet-Les Halles, the most important metro stop in the world. It is also the closest station to the Hotel.

1978

The Hotel Britannique changes hands from the Perret-Baxter family. The British born Miss Louise Claude Baxter, born the 17th May 1926, passes the Hotel over to the family Danjou. Of French nationality the Danjous originate not from Great Britain, but Brittany.

1980

The hotel closes for six months for important renovation works. A lift is installed, the bathrooms are added, each floor is rearranged and the decoration is renewed.

1985

The Hotel Britannique receives its 3rd star

2000

The hotel enters the very selective club of quality hotels selected by the Hotels with Charm Guide

2010

The Hotel Britannique is placed the 37th greatest hotel out of the 1841 hotels in Paris by Tripadvisor. A great 150th birthday present, Champagne!

Romantic Paris Hotel

Hotel Britannique Paris Romantic Paris Hotel, 3 star Hotel Paris

In 1755, the Marquis de Marigny employs the architect Jacques-Germain Soufflot. Soufflot had sent from Rome his idea which was received with great acclamation.

The foundations are dug in 1758. Louis XV lays the first stone in the 6^th September 1764.
Financial difficulties and the death of Soufflot in 1780 delays  the construction of the building which would finally be completed in 1790, during the French Revolution.
On the pediment is written the quote from Pastoret: « For great men, the grateful homeland ».

The Revolution exploded and the National Assembly decides by a decree of April 4^th 1791, to use the building as a burial ground for exceptional individuals who had contributed  to the success of France. « May  the temple of religion be the temple of the country, and the tomb of a great man become the altar of freedom. » This building was named the French Pantheon.
During the 1^st Empire, the building was both a burial ground and a place of worship. The crypt sheltered the grave of great servants of the state, while in the upper part religious ceremonies and often imperial commemorations took place.

From 1821 to 1830, the monument was no longer a pantheon.  After an ordinance of December 12^th, 1821, Louis XVIII and Charles X restore it as a church (dedicated to St. Genevieve). However, the graves are not removed. Whilst  Louis XVIII’s courtiers had questioned if it was proper to leave the remains of the anticlerical Voltaire in a holy place, the King replies, « Leave him alone, he is punished enough having to hear Mess every day. »

The July Monarchy moves the Church of St. Genevieve to the Catholic worship on August 15^th, 1830 and re-establishes its first destination. The  Pantheon was then called « Temple of Glory. » David d’Angers redid the facade and the famous motto « For great men the grateful homeland » reappears. But during this period, no one will be “Pantheonised”.

From 1848 to 1851 under the Second Republic, it would become the “Temple of Humanity”,  without attracting either new tenant.
During  the Second Empire (1851-1870), the building becomes a church and the  inscription disappears again.
It’s only since 1885, when Victor Hugo died and was buried in the Pantheon that  the church of St. Genevieve disappeared. From that moment until now the building is the place where great men honored by the Republic rest  in peace.

The pediment represents: the Republic (center) promoting liberty and protecting the people,Sciences (left) – represented by many great scholars (François-Xavier Bichat, Berthollet, Gaspard Monge, Laplace …), Philosophers (Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau …), Writers (Fenelon, Peter Cornelius …) Artists (Jacques Louis David …) – and History (right) – represented by the great people of the State (Napoleon Bonaparte … ) and students of the Ecole Polytechnique.

In 1791, when the notion of  the French Pantheon was formed, the Constituent Assembly had the decisive power. The 1794s Convention chose to burry Jean-Jacques Rousseau, but also to remove Mirabeau, and later Marat.
During the First Empire, Napoleon the first assumed this privilege.

Under the Third Republic, it is the members who propose and decide. Some transfers involve violent polemics, such as Emile Zola in 1908.
Nowadays, this choice belongs to the President of the Republic. The family may object to this honor, as Charles Peguy and Albert Camus families did in 2009.

Great men admitted to Pantheon

* Mirabeau, Monday, April 4, 1791 :

Mirabeau died in Paris on 2^nd April 1791. This night, torches were lit and his body was taken to the Pantheon, crossing through old Paris. The building however was not yet adapted to its new role and the coffin was actually dropped in a vault of the old abbatial church.
But in November 1792, the discovery of the iron wardrobe at the Tuileries gave evidence that he owned subsidies in the Court … The September 12^th, 1794, his coffin was removed from the Hall through a side door, while Marat’s coffin crossed the threshold of honor. In his speech David stressed that: “ the vice and the imposture flees the Pantheon. The people there, called him the one who never made a mistake”. Mirabeau’s remains were anonymously buried in the cemetery of Clamart.

* Voltaire, Monday, July 11, 1791:

The French’s revolutionary decision to transfer the remains of Voltaire to the Pantheon shows their desire to affiliate with the Enlightenment. It was perhaps the suggestion of the Girondins who willingly promoted the ideas of the philosopher.That was one of the first revolutionary ceremonies. It was also an affirmation of the Pantheon as a temple for the great dead; one has to remember that when Voltaire died in 1778, he was an anticlerical and a Freemason, who had been furtively buried because the Catholic church refused him a religious funeral. Besides, the clergy wouldn’t participate in the ceremony of “Pantheonisation”.

Thus, thirteen years after his death (May 30^th, 1778), Voltaire’s remains was transferred to the Pantheon. The night before the funeral, the coffin was exhibited in the ruins of the Bastille – the prison where Voltaire and others enemies of the Old Regime had been confined. Since this time, the prison has become a kind of symbol of the Revolution. The ceremony was staged by the architect Cellerier, a follower of the Greco-Roman style.

An orchestra followed the coffin pulled by twelve white horses. The walls were decorated with theatrical masks, with this accolade:
« He fought the atheists and fanatics. He inspired tolerance, he claimed for the human rights against the slavery of feudalism. Poet, historian, philosopher, he enlarges the human spirit and taught him to be free. « 

* Jean-Paul Marat, September 21, 1794:

While the body of Marat crossed the threshold of honor, Mirabeau’s coffin was released by a side door. The following eulogy was delivered: « Like Jesus, Marat ardently loved people. Like Jesus, Marat hated kings, nobles, priests, the rich, the rogues and like Jesus, he continued to fight these plagues of society « .
In 1795, he was considered as a traitor. On the 8^th of February, his coffin was removed from the Pantheon; the sculpture busts portraying himself were broken and his remains are thrown into the sewage. Today his tomb is found in the cemetery of Saint-Etienne-du-Mont near the Pantheon.

* Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Saturday, October 11, 1794 :

The National Convention vowed a decree in April 14^th, 1794 ordering the removal of Rousseau’s remains from the Pantheon. Robespierre is representing the Convention and has to submit the decree. They wanted to establish a spiritual revolution and offer the country civil ceremonies where the ideals of the new morality would be performed, replacing the banned Christian holidays.

* Victor Hugo, Monday, June, 1st, 1885:

Since 1876, Republicans dreamt to restore their Pantheon, their temple of the dead. But the plan passed by the House in 1881, was rejected by the Senate. It’s only the famous author of Les Miserables who would brutally impose it, so much so that the President of the Republic, Jules Grévy decided to give back its republican status.
On Thursday, May 28, 1885, the church is closed to the faithful. The next day, they removed the religious symbols from the pediment of the Pantheon. Despite protests from Catholics, this time the transformation would be irreversible.

Two years before his death, Hugo adds to his will and testament: « I give fifty thousand francs to the poor. I want to be brought to the cemetery in their hearse. I refuse the oration of any churches, I ask a prayer for all souls. I believe in God « , he could not possibly imagine how this statement would correspond with the deist philosophy and secular republican government. The day of his funueral, under the Arc de Triumph appeared a black veiled pauper’s hearse and a huge catafalque built by Charles Garnier,  the architect of the Paris Opera.

* August, the 4th, 1889 :

Théophile Malo Corret de la Tour d’Auvergne

Lazare Nicolas Marguerite Carnot

François-Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, called Marceau

Jean-Baptiste Baudin :

These four people were buried to mark the centenary of the French Revolution.

* Sadi Carnot, 29 juin 1894 :

He was assassinated by the anarchist Caserio on June 24^th. He is the only president to have been buried in the Pantheon.

* Marcellin Berthelot, Monday, March 25, 1907:

The scientist died on March 18^th, 1907. His coffin was taken directly to the Pantheon, along with the coffin of his wife who had coincidently died on the same day. She had expressed a wish never to be separated from her husband.

* Emile Zola, Thursday, June 4, 1908:

The decision to “patheonise” Emile Zola came from a dim political climate in a traumatized and divided France after the Dreyfus scandal.
A few days before the ceremony Jean Jaures wrote: « The great reform of the Separation, the most important that has been attempted in our country since the French Revolution ». In addition to this, in 1904 France had severed its diplomatic relations with the Vatican.

* Léon Gambetta, jeudi 11 novembre 1920 :

A speech was delivered at the ceremony by Millerand the President of the Republic.

* Jean Jaures, Sunday, November 23, 1924 :

The decision to transfer Jean Jaures’ remains to the Pantheon was an opportunity for the elected government Leftists to benefit from a symbolic anchorage whilst paying tribute to the man who tried to prevent war.

* Wednesday November 17, 1948:

Paul Langevin

Jean Perrin

The ceremony takes place the same day for these two scientists.

* Friday, May 20, 1949:

Victor Schoelcher

Félix Éboué

The vigil took place at the Arc de Triomphe, honored by the President Vincent Auriol’s presence -most senior of the state. The procession with the kind that Chopin’s Funeral March evokes, proceeding through the Palais du Luxembourg Pantheon between a double row of soldiers. The ashes of Victor Schoelcher and Felix Eboue would later be placed in the crypt, along with those of Jean Jaures.

* Louis Braille, dimanche 22 juin 1952:

and Jean Moulin, samedi 19 décembre 1964:

* Rene Cassin, Monday, October 5, 1987:

The one that we honor this day was the laying to rest of the lawyer and Nobel peace prize winner in 1968. Rene Cassin had honorably passed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

* Jean Monnet, Wednesday, November 9, 1988:

« There is exactly one hundred years, the November 9^th, 1888, Jean Monnet was born in Cognac, Charente. His life which was long and enriched tells how a small provincial from Saintonge became the first citizen of Europe …  »

* Tuesday December 12, 1989:

L’abbé Grégoire

Gaspard Monge

Condorcet

The ashes of these three men were also transferred to the Pantheon. The ceremony corresponded with the celebrations of the bicentenary of the French Revolution held by François Mitterrand, President of the French Republic.
« Revolutionaries in your time you were. Revolutionaries in our time you remain… In Salvation and Fraternity. You are welcomed in the temple of the Republic, in the phantom parliament of the free, equal and fraternal men.  »

* Marie and Pierre Curie, Thursday, April 20, 1995:

For the first time in history a woman is admitted for her own merits, alongside her husband in the sanctuary of great men.
Note: For fear of radiation, the coffin of Mary was sealed.

* Andre Malraux, Saturday, November 23, 1996:

Malraux is the fifth writer to enter the Hall of Pantheon.

* Alexandre Dumas, Saturday, November 30, 2002:

« With this gesture, the Republic will give full scope for one of its most turbulent and brightest children whose whole life was spent to serve our republican ideals.  »

« The name of Alexandre Dumas is more than French, it is European, it is more than European, it is universal”. The coffin of Alexandre Dumas was then descended into the vault XXIV where there lay already those of Victor Hugo and Emile Zola.

Who will be the next great man?

Romantic Paris Hotel

Some consider that the name of the Parisii tribe comes from the Celtic Gallic word parisio meaning « the working people » or « the stone breakers”. The  King Saint Louis encouraged the legend of an ancestry of prince Pâris which kidnapped the beautiful Hélene and provoked the Trojan War.

Paris has many nicknames, but its most famous is « La Ville-Lumière » (« The City of Light ») a name it owes first to its fame as a centre of education and ideas during the Age of Enlightenment, and later to its early adoption of street lighting.

Paris’ inhabitants are known in English as « Parisians » and in French as Parisiens. Parisians are often pejoratively called Parigots, a term first used in 1900 by those living outside the Paris region, but now the term may be considered endearing by Parisians themselves.

HISTORY

The earliest archaeological signs of permanent habitation in the Paris area date from around 4200 BC. The Parisii, a sub-tribe of the Celtic Senones, inhabited the area near the river Seine from around 250 BC. The Romans conquered the Paris basin in 52 BC, with a permanent settlement by the end of the same century on the Left Bank Sainte Geneviève Hill and the Île de la Cité. The Gallo-Roman town was originally called Lutetia, but later Gallicised to Lutèce.

It expanded greatly over the following centuries, becoming a prosperous city with a forum, palaces, baths, temples, theatres, and an amphitheatre. The collapse of the Roman empire and the fifth-century Germanic invasions sent the city into a period of decline. By 400 AD, Lutèce, by then largely abandoned by its inhabitants, was little more than a garnison town entrenched into the hastily fortified central island. The city reclaimed its original appellation of « Paris » towards the end of the Roman occupation. The Frankish king Clovis I established Paris as his capital in 508.

Paris’s population was around 200,000 when the Black Death arrived in 1348, killing as many as 800 people a day, and 40,000 died from the plague in 1466. According to Biraben, plague was present in Paris for almost one year in three in the 16th and 17th centuries to 1670. Paris lost its position as seat of the French realm during occupation of the English-allied Burgundians during the Hundred Years’ War, but regained its title when Charles VII of France reclaimed the city from English rule in 1436. Paris from then became France’s capital once again in title, but France’s real centre of power would remain in the Loire Valley until King Francis I returned France’s crown residences to Paris in 1528.

During the French Wars of Religion, Paris was a stronghold of the Catholic party. In August 1572, under the reign of Charles IX, while many noble Protestants were in Paris on the occasion of the marriage of Henry of Navarre, the future Henry IV, to Margaret of Valois, sister of Charles IX, the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre occurred; begun on 24 August, it lasted several days and spread throughout the country. During the Fronde, Parisians rose in rebellion and the royal family fled the city (1648). King Louis XIV then moved the royal court permanently to Versailles in 1682.

A century later, Paris was the centre stage for the French Revolution, with the Storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789 and the overthrow of the monarchy in September 1792.

Paris was occupied by Russian Cossack and Kalmyk cavalry units upon Napoleon’s defeat on the 31st of March 1814; this was the first time in 400 years that the city had been conquered by a foreign power. The ensuing Restoration period, or the return of the monarchy under Louis XVIII (1814–1824) and Charles X, ended with the July Revolution Parisian uprising of 1830.

The new ‘constitutional monarchy’ under Louis-Philippe ended with the 1848 « February Revolution » that led to the creation of the Second Republic.

Throughout these events, cholera epidemics in 1832 and 1849 ravaged the population of Paris; the 1832 epidemic alone claimed 20,000 of the population of 650,000.

The greatest development in Paris’s history began with the Industrial Revolution creation of a network of railways that brought an unprecedented flow of migrants to the capital from the 1840s. The city’s largest transformation came with the 1852 Second Empire under Napoleon III; his préfet Haussmann levelled entire districts of Paris’ narrow, winding medieval streets to create the network of wide avenues and neo-classical façades that still make much of modern Paris; the reason for this transformation was twofold, as not only did the creation of wide boulevards beautify and sanitize the capital, it also facilitated the effectiveness of troops and artillery against any further uprisings and barricades that Paris was so famous for. The Hotel Britannique was built in 1860.

The Second Empire ended in the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871), and a besieged Paris under heavy bombardment surrendered on 28 January 1871. The discontent of Paris’ populace with the new armistice-signing government seated in Versailles resulted in the creation of a Parisian « Commune » government, supported by an army in large part created from members of the City’s former National Guard, that would both continue resistance against the Prussians and oppose the government « Versaillais » army. The result was a bloody week Semaine Sanglante that resulted in the death, many by summary execution, of roughly 20,000 « communards » before the fighting ended on May 28, 1871. The ease at which the Versaillais army overtook Paris owed much to Baron Haussmann’s earlier renovations.

France’s late 19th-century Universal Expositions made Paris an increasingly important centre of technology, trade and tourism. Its most famous were the 1889 Universal Exposition to which Paris owes its « temporary » display of architectural engineering prowess, the Eiffel Tower, a structure that remained the world’s tallest building until 1930; the 1900 Universal Exposition saw the opening of the first Paris Métro line.

« Fluctuat nec mergitur », meaning « He was beaten by the waves but does not sink ». It is about the « Scilicet », ship also represented on the crest of the city and symbol of powerful corporation of the Boatmen

Source : Wikipedia

Some museums to visit

• Musée Carnavalet
• Crypte archeolique du parvis Notre-Dame
• Musée Cognacq-Jay

Romantic Paris Hotel

Hotel Britannique Paris Romantic Paris Hotel, 3 star Hotel Paris

We recommend you to visit the Sainte-Chapelle, a masterpiece of Flamboyant Gothic architecture built by Saint Louis in the heart of the Palais de la Cité on the Ile de la Cité in Paris.

A little history…

Located on the Seine in the heart of Paris, the Ile de la Cité is in fact the old birthplace of the city of Paris, once known as Lutetia…

During his reign from 1226 to 1270, Louis IX, dit St. Louis, let expand the Capetian palace to the north shore of the island. And in the palace, the Sainte-Chapelle was built, as a monumental reliquary to welcome the most precious relics of the kingdom: the Crown of Thorns and a piece of the True Cross, purchased by St. Louis to the Byzantine emperor in 1239 and 1241. Through these acquisitions, St. Louis affirmed the temporal and spiritual supremacy of the Kings of France.

Visiting the Sainte-Chapelle…

Depending on the model Palatine, the building houses two chapels superimposed a low chapel for the public worship, and an upper chapel, reserved for the royal family ; its access was done through a private gallery.

By entering the chapel low, you’ll be amazed by the profusion of side columns which support arches overhead. Low ceiling, it is lined with massive columns supporting the entire weight of the building. Its structure provides a great impression of lightness and space.

This feeling is even stronger in the upper chapel, where restoration in the XIXth century has adorned the columns and arches of lilies on a blue background and Castilian towers on a red background, a tribute to the mother of St. Louis, Blanche de Castille.

You will reach the upper chapel by a narrow spiral staircase, and you’ll discover a treasure of sacred art, a unique testimony of the apogee of the Gothic architecture : some 600 m² stained glasses on 15 windows of 15 meters high and a rose window of 9 meters diameter! All are magnified by the slightest ray of sunshine.

Each bay represents religious scenes, illustrating a different theme from the Old or New Testament, with a wealth of detail and dazzling colors. From the Genesis and Exodus to the history of the sacred relics, until their purchase by St. Louis represented on its white horse… the narrative richness of the stained glasses is explained in a detailed notice available near the exit. It should be noted that two-thirds of the windows are original and date from the XIIIth century.

The bays are separated by thin columns whose bases host statues of Apostles.

At the back of the nave, a carved gallery supports the canopy under which the Crown of Thorns was once exposed. Turning around, you will discover the beautiful rose of the west front of the chapel.

Outside, an army of gargoyles watch over the massive columns of the edifice, whose spire rises to 75 meters (it was replaced in 1853, the original collapsed in 1793). A statue of the archangel Michael is at the height of the roof.

Restoration work is regularly done in this sumptuous chapel. Since November 2010, the National Monuments Centre continues the vast campaign of restoration of the windows, initiated in the 1970s. The Sainte-Chapelle is part of a UNESCO World Heritage.

Useful informations :

Ste-Chapelle :
8 boulevard du Palais – Paris 1er
Metro : line 4, station Cité
Tel. 01 53 40 60 80

Opening hours :

• Times may vary
• Open every day, 1 March to 31 October : 9:30 to 18:00
• Cashdesks close 30 minutes earlier
• Open in the evening on Wednesdays, 15 May to 15 September, last admission at 21:00

Closed:

• between 13:00 and 14:00 during the week
• 1 January, 1 May 1 and 25 December

Attention!
Due to its location inside the Palais de Justice, access to the Sainte-Chapelle is controlled by the gendarmerie ; it is strictly forbidden for visitors to be in possession of any metal objects such as knives, scissors and any other pointed or sharp metal instrument.

Hotel Britannique Paris, Romantic Paris Hotel, 3 star Hotel Paris

For a romantic stroll, there is nothing like the Garden of Luxemburg, (Jardin du Luxembourg). Located in the heart of Paris, steps away from the Panthéon, the 17th Century gardens feature beautiful beds of flowers, large green spaces, fountains and statues. Parisians of all ages patronize the space on their lunch break, for walks, and sport activities.

Founded in 1612 by Marie de Medici, the widow of King Henry IV of France and regent of King Louis XIII of France, writers throughout the ages have found inspiration in the garden’s peaceful alleys – famous poet Gerard de Nerval even entitled one of his pieces “An alley in the Luxemburg Garden”. Make sure to walk around the The Medici Fountain (La fontaine Médicis) in the northeastern part of the park. One of the park’s numerous treasures, it was built in 1630 by Marie de Medici. The northwestern section of the garden has another feel: tennis courts are there, as well as chess boards that are used throughout the year.

The gardens are also home to the French Senate, housed in the breath-taking Palais du Luxembourg. Built in 1615, the palace is a marvel of architecture. Visits are organized one Saturday per month between 10:30 am and 2:30 pm. To register call +33 (0)1.44.54.19.49.

Right next to the Senate is the Musée du Luxembourg. A must-see for art lovers, the Museum showcases unique art pieces from the European Renaissance.
If you are there between May and October, a small detour by les Orangeries in the northwestern section of the park is highly recommended. The Orangeries are a series of spaces dedicated to exhibiting exotic plants from the Mediterranean region.

Edwin Deakin, Notre-Dame Paris, Private Collection

Edouard Leon Cortes, quai des tournelles et Notre Dame

Notre-Dame, 1885 Paul Signac

Paul Signac, Quai de la seine et ND

Eugene Galien Laloue, Notre Dame

Eugene Galien Laloue, vue de Notre Dame sous la neige

Albert Lebourg Quai de la Tournelle et Notre Dame

Maximilien Luce

Johan Jongkind

Maximilien Luce 1901

Maximilien Luce

Albert Marquet

Utrillo 1910

Affiche SNCF Utrillo

Matisse – Notre Dame (Sunrise)

Andre Marquet Notre-dame-de-Paris et les bouquinistes

Andre Bardet Notre-Dame-de-Paris et le pont S

Michel Delacroix just the two of us

Constantin Kluge Notre Dame

Christopher Gerlach Sunday Morning on Seine

Claude Max Lochu Notre Dame vue de Jussieu

Ludovic Piette Rue Lepic 1860

Pierre Auguste Renoir bal au Moulin Galette1876

Pierre Auguste Renoir Galette 1876

Renoir, the Garden in Montmartre

Federico Z. du Moulin de la Galette 1878

Van Gogh moulin de la Galette 1886

Van Gogh, le Moulin de la Galette

Van Gogh Paris 1887

Pablo Picasso Moulin Galette 1900

Pere Ysern bal au moulin Galette 1902-04

Woman of Montmartre Van Dongen

Kees van Dongen Montmartre et le Sacré Coeur

Kees van Dongen bal moulin de la galette 1904-05

Auguste Chabaud, Building of the Sacre coeur 1908

Elisee Maclet Sacre coeur

Elisee Maclet Sacre Coeur

Utrillo, moulin galette et Sacre Coeur

Utrillo, Place des Abesses

Bernard Buffet Sacre Coeur

Claude Max Loch l’heure bleue a Montmartre

Claude Venard Sacre coeur

1889 Georges Garen embrasement Tour Eiffel

Universal exhibition, 1900, anonym

Universal exhibition, 1900, anonym

Chagall bride Groom of the Eiffel Tower

Chagall Eiffel tower serenade

Chagall Tour Eiffel sketch for the angel of Mozart

Posters from Delaunay, Tour Eiffel

Delaunay, Eiffel Tower

Delaunay Tour Eiffel

Robert Delaunay Tour Eiffel

Dufy Paris Printemps pieces

Raoul Dufy, Tour Eiffel

Anonym

Jean Carzou, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower

Jean Peltier, Good Morning Paris

Bernard Buffet, Pont Alexandre III and tour Eiffel

Andre Granet, illumination Tour Eiffel for the international exhibition

Dan Kpel, lighting effects on the river Seine

Hawkins, Tour Eiffel, seen from the Trocadero

Krys Gieskieng, Eiffel Afternoon

Lynne Neuman Eiffel tower

Nahda Balaa Paris for lovers

Painter tour Eiffel

Sandy Starr

Veyretout Paris, the Tour Eiffel at night, seen from Trocadéro

The Grand Chatelet, the medieval fortress defending the access to the Grand Pont and the Ile de la Cité, also the seat of royal power, was destroyed in 1808 under Napoleon’s order. In 1862, the elegant square and the sumptuous Theatre du Chatelet were built up and inaugurated on its old location. From the 12th to the 20th century, the neighborhood was bustling with activity. The proximity of the Halles, the great central market and the « belly of Paris » has made the district the most crowded in the capital. Monet, Cortes Laloue, Luce remind us with great prowess.

Market and Fountain of Innocents, anonym

The market, fountain of Innocents, John James Chalon, 1822, Carnavalet

inside the central halls, 1872, anonym

Monet, rue montorgueil, 1878

Edouard Leon Cortes, rue de rivoli

Galien Laloue, the stock market and St Eustache, rue de la Coquillere

Maximilien Luce, roadworks in Reaumur street, 1896

Maximilien Luce, roadworks in Reaumur street, 1896

Maximilien Luce

The Halls, 6 a.m., anonym

Mathilde du Monceau, The Paris’ halls

Mentor Huebner, The halls, 1961

Storming of Bastille, July, 14th 1789, by Jean-Baptiste LALLEMAND (Musée Carnavalet)

La prise de la Bastille, le 14 juillet 1789 – par Jean-Baptiste LALLEMAND (Musée Carnavalet) (2)

Claude Monet 1873

Monet, 1873, Paris, Carnival in « boulevard des Capucines »

Boulevard of Capucines in Paris by Monet

Monet, saint lazare station

Eugene Galien Laloue, Paris

« Avenue de Clichy, » 1887,  Gauguin, Paris, 1889.

Camille Pissaro, place du Havre, Paris

Pissaro, avenue de l’opera

Pissarro, Boulevard des Italiens (Afternoon)

Gustave Caillebotte, roof of  Paris

G. Caillebotte, Balcony street in Paris

My Paris, from the original painting of Caillebotte, Anonyme

Jean Beraud, Paris Street Scene

Jozef Mehoffer, 1894, Boulevard of Clichy

Edouard Manet, Flags

Renoir, « les grands boulevards »

E. Munch