Exploring Paris’s cemeteries–(Montmartre, Montparnasse, Passy, Père Lachaise, and Picpus)–can be a rewarding task. Artists, statesmen, and industrialists abound in these cities of the dead. Additionally, memorials, historical relics, and works of art make such trips all the more fascinating. With enough time, Paris’ cemeteries will reveal their treasures to any visitors. Given that most visitors are on a strict schedule, a cemetery map will save valuable time when conducting a tour of the cemetery’s highlights. However, most maps only point to the general area in which the tomb is located. This leads to aimless wandering and frustration which can be minimized with prior knowledge of a tomb’s design. Therefore, I hope that these articles will serve as a useful tool for visitors to Paris’ cemeteries as well as a guide to those interested in learning more about some of the most famous and interesting sites in Paris.
Père Lachaise was established in 1804 and is located at 16, rue du Repos. It was named after Père Franà§ois de la Chaise, the confessor to Louis XIV, who lived on the site. Unfortunately, the cemetery was not an immediate success. Parisians were wary of being buried in a new cemetery, especially one not consecrated by the church. In order to remedy this situation, the cemetery managed to secure the remains of La Fontaine and Molière and transferred them to the cemetery in 1804. Another public relations move occurred in 1817, when the remains of Pierre Abélard and Héloà¯se were also transferred to the cemetery. They were interred under a canopy made from fragments of the Abbey of Nogent-sur-Seine. Also of note are the Holocaust memorials, the Mur des Fédérés (Communards’ Wall), the lipstick stained tomb of Oscar Wilde, and Jim Morrison’s grave.
The cemetery’s architecture and monuments:
The main entrance to Père Lachaise
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Another entrance to the cemetery:
Père Lachaise crematorium:
Memorial to the “victims of June the City of Paris is grateful”
Monument to the Dead and ossuary (Monument aux Morts) designed by Albert Bartholomé:
Depository vault of the City of Paris:
“In memory of its servants, victims of duty of the City of Paris”
Memorial to those who died aboard Flash Airlines Flight 604 over Sharm el Sheikh on January 3, 2004:
Memorial to those who died aboard the DC-10 aircraft (UTA flight 772) over Niger on September 19, 1989:
Memorial to Andranik Ozanian (General Antranik) national Armenian Hero:
“Here lies an unknown deportee (of work) victim of betrayal and of Nazi barbarism. 1942-1945 — 600,000 French deported for forced labor in Germany. 60,000 deaths. 15,000 shot, hanged, or beheaded for acts of resistance. 1945-1970 – 50,000 missing as a result of these deportations”
Memorial to the Jews deported from Drancy. The Memorial reads in translation “inscription engraved at Ninth Fort of Kaunas deported by Convoy 73. In memory of 878 Jews deported from Drancy May 15, 1944 to Kaunas (Lithuania) and Reval-Tallinn (Estonia). 22 returned in 1945.”
The Communards’ Wall (Mur des Fédérés) at the Père Lachaise cemetery is where, on May 28, 1871, one-hundred forty-seven fédérés, combatants of the Paris Commune, were shot and thrown in an open trench at the foot of the wall on May 28, 1871:
Memorial to the French volunteers in the International Brigades killed during the Spanish Civil War:
The plaque reads in translation “under this stone [is] a bit of ash [from the] seven thousand French martyrs murdered by the Nazis at [the] Neuengamme [Concentration] Camp – they died for us to live free – their families and comrades, survivors have erected this monument to their memory November 13, 1949“
Memorial for all of the Spanish killed in the Second World War:
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