The Montmartre cemetery, officially the cemetery of the North, opened in 1825. It is the third largest necropolis in Paris, after Père Lachaise and Montparnasse. Its surface area is 11 hectares.
The exceptional location of the Montmartre cemetery
Nestled on the side of the Butte Montmartre, it offers a 20 m difference in level and a remarkable view of the capital. 21,500 graves are gathered there in the shade of almost 800 trees - 38 different species, mainly maples, to which are added a few chestnut trees, lime trees and thuyas.
Origin of the cemetery
During the Revolution, the cemeteries were considered as property of the clergy. As a result, and by the law of May 15, 1791, they were nationalized (national property). As a result of this law, the existing parish cemetery of Montmartre, the "Calvaire cemetery", became the property of the commune of Montmartre (independent of the commune of Paris). It was then closed during this troubled period.
It is probably after the closure of this old cemetery that the origin of the great cemetery of the North dates. The site chosen are old quarries of Montmartre, known for their gypsum which was made a plaster used on a large scale in the capital.
History of the Montmartre Cemetery
It was successively called, because of its location, "Cemetery of the White Barrier" then "Cemetery under Montmartre", "Field of Rest" and finally "Cemetery of Montmartre".
This new cemetery was opened in 1795 (especially from 1798). It was then only a rather narrow enclosure established on the site of old abandoned quarries. Quickly saturated, major leveling work and an extension were carried out in the "temporary" cemetery during the Restoration. It officially opened its doors on January 1, 1825.
The cemetery of Montmartre is included in Paris limits since 1860, when the commune of Montmartre is annexed by the city of Paris. This cemetery has also become historical because of the many famous people who are buried there. It is also protected as a historical monument. Its entrance is at 20, avenue Rachel, in the 18th arrondissement, on the side of the Butte de Montmartre.
The cemetery of Montmartre is the 3rd largest cemetery in Paris (ex aequo with the cemetery of Batignolles), after the Cemetery of Père Lachaise (north east of Paris) and the cemetery of Montparnasse (south west of Paris). Its surface area is 10.48 hectares. About 500 people are buried there each year.
Another particularity: the cemetery of Montmartre is spanned by the Caulaincourt bridge, a metal bridge built in 1888 and which was the subject of many controversies at the time of its construction.
The problem of cemeteries in Paris (Intras-mural)
"There is clearly not enough space in Paris itself," notes a funeral director. The City of Paris, which manages the 14 cemeteries in Paris, also manages 6 cemeteries in the Paris suburbs. However, this is not enough. As a result, the price of burial plots for families with no old ties to the capital is very high.
Families are also encouraged to bury their deceased in the provinces (in the commune where they have second homes, for example) or to practice cremation (which is less practiced in France than in many foreign countries).
On the town hall side, the administration proceeds to more "resumptions of concessions in perpetuity", but it is a long procedure (more than 10 years) because it is necessary to verify the absence of remaining family over several decades. At the same time, it issues new concessions not in perpetuity but limited to 10, 20 or 30 years.
Hence the interest in dying when you have a minimum of fame.
Personalities buried in the Montmartre cemetery
They are numerous over the almost 200 years that this cemetery exists. Some, famous in their time are now forgotten. You will find below a small but not exhaustive list.
If you visit the cemetery, don't forget to ask for a free paper map at the cemetery reception. You will find the location of all the personalities buried there. You can also view these 2 documents in the Gallery of this Post (the last 2 photos).
The number of writers, actors, writers, musicians, dancers and artists in general is very important in the cemetery of Montmartre. Some graves are particularly visited, the singer Dalida in particular.
André-Marie Ampère (1775-1836)
Claude Autant-Lara (1901-2000)
Michel Berger (1947-1992) & France Gall (1947-2018)
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
Marcel Boussac (1889-1980)
Jean-Claude Brialy (1933-2007)
Camondo
Guy Carcassonne (1951-2013)
Pierre Cardin (1922-2020)
Jean-Baptiste Charcot (1867-1936)
Jean-Martin Charcot (1825-1893)
Jacques Charon (1920-1975)
Véra Clouzot (1913-1960) et Henri-Georges Clouzot (1907-1977)
Dalida (Yolanda-Cristina Gigliotti, dite) (1933-1987)
La Dame aux camélias (Rose Alphonsine Plessis)
Edgar Degas (1834-1917)
Théophile Delcassé (1852-1923)
Émile Deutsh de la Meurthe (1847-1924)
Alexandre Dumas fils (1824-1895)
Marie Duplessis (1824-1847)
Jacques Fabbri (1925-1997)
Georges Feydeau (1862-1921)
Alain Feydeau (1934-2008)
Léon Foucault (1819-1868)
Charles Fourier (1772-1837)
Alexandre-Évariste Fragonard (1783-1850)
Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806)
Michel Galabru (1922-2016)
Edmond de Goncourt (1822-1896)
Jules de Goncourt (1830-1870)
Amédée Gordini (1899-1979)
La Goulue (Louise Weber) (1866-1929)
Lucien Guitry (1860-1925)
Sacha Guitry (1885-1957)
Jean Hamburger (1909-1992)
Louis Jouvet (1887-1951)
Margaret Kelly (1910-2004)
Eugène Labiche (1815-1888)
Michael Lonsdale (1931-2020)
Francis Lopez (1916-1995)
Mary Marquet (1894-1979)
Jeanne Moreau (1928-2017)
Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880)
Rose Alphonsine Plessis, (1824-1847)
Juliette Récamier (1777-1849)
Ernest Renan (1823-1892)
Dick Rivers (Hervé Forneri, dit) (1945-2019)
Jacques Rivette (1928-2016)
Charles-Henri Sanson (1739-1806)
Henri Sanson (1767-1840)
Henri-Clément Sanson (1799-1889)
François Truffaut (1932-1984)
Alfred de Vigny (1797-1863)
Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau (1846-1904)
Louise Weber, "La Goulue" (1866-1929)
Émile Zola (1840-1902)
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