The Boulevard des Italiens () is a boulevard in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. It is one of the '
Grands Boulevards
The ''grands boulevards''
The ''Grands Boulevards'' are the quintessence of the Parisian boulevards. Their origin is a plan initiated by Louis XIV's minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert in the late 1660s, of comprehensive reforms and remodeling ...
' in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, a chain of boulevards built through the former course of the
Wall of Charles V and the
Louis XIII Wall, which were destroyed by the orders of
Louis XIV
LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
. The origin of the name is the théâtre des Italiens built on it in 1783, shortly before the
French Revolution on the site now occupied by the third
Salle Favart
The Salle Favart (), officially the Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique (), is a Paris opera house and theatre, the current home of the Opéra-Comique. It was built from 1893 to 1898 in a neo-Baroque style to the designs of the French architect Louis ...
.
History
The boulevard's former names were:
*''boulevard Neuf'' ("New boulevard")
*''boulevard du Dépôt'' (boulevard of the barrack), because of a barrack installed in 1764 on the corner of
rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin
The Rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin () is a street in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. It runs north-northwest from the Boulevard des Italiens to the Église de la Sainte-Trinité, Paris, Église de la Sainte-Trinité.
History
In the 17th century, ...
*''boulevard de la Chaussée-d'Antin''
*''boulevard
Cerutti'' with the name of a hôtel on the boulevard (during the French Revolution)
*''le petit Coblence'' ("little Koblenz") after 1795, since many
émigrés returning to France during the
French Directory
The Directory (also called Directorate; ) was the system of government established by the Constitution of the Year III, French Constitution of 1795. It takes its name from the committee of 5 men vested with executive power. The Directory gov ...
gathered on it (
Koblenz
Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary.
Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...
had been a popular exile destination for them)
*''boulevard de Gand'', on one side of the boulevard, under the second
Bourbon Restoration, from 1815 to 1828 in memory of
Louis XVIII
Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 y ...
's exile in
Ghent
Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...
during the
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days ( ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition (), marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII o ...
.
Throughout the 19th century the boulevard was a meeting place for the elegant elite of Paris (a role that lasted until the First World War).
It was to replace ''
Muscadins'' and ''
Merveilleuses'' at the time of the
Directoire
The Directory (also called Directorate; ) was the system of government established by the French Constitution of 1795. It takes its name from the committee of 5 men vested with executive power. The Directory governed the French First Republ ...
, ''Gandins'' at the
Restauration, ''
Dandies'' during the reign of
Louis-Philippe 1st, women in ''
crinoline
A crinoline is a stiff or structured petticoat designed to hold out a skirt, popular at various times since the mid-19th century. Originally, crinoline described a stiff fabric made of horsehair ("crin") and cotton or linen which was used to ...
s'' during the
Second Empire.
That time was also a major epoque for several famous ''Cafés'': Café de Paris, café Tortoni (the
café Tortoni in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the RÃo de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
takes its name from that in Paris), café Frascati, café Français, Maison dorée among others. Upon completion of
boulevard Haussmann in the 1920s these establishments disappeared to be replaced by other buildings, particularly financial ones.
Notable places
At the junction with
rue Laffitte, a nice view of the
Sacré-Coeur de Montmartre, which seems to be placed on the top of the
Church Notre-Dame-de-Lorette, whereas it is actually more distant.
* at n° 8, the
Théâtre Robert-Houdin, founded by the magician
Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin and, in 1888, purchased and directed by
Georges Méliès
Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès ( , ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French magic (illusion), magician, toymaker, actor, and filmmaker. He led many technical and narrative developments in the early days of film, cinema, primarily in th ...
.
* At n° 13, the site of the former
Café Anglais (1802-1913), well known restaurant of the Second Empire, replaced by a building in the
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
style.
* At n° 16, the site of the former Café Riche (1791).
* At n° 19,
Crédit Lyonnais headquarters
The Crédit Lyonnais headquarters (the headquarters of the France, French bank Crédit Lyonnais, now LCL S.A., LCL) is a Haussmann's renovation of Paris, Haussmannian style building located in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris. It is on the block ...
, built from 1876 to 1913 in the
Haussmann style.
* At n° 20, the site of the former luxury restaurant
La Maison dorée (the Golden House) (1839-1841). Now the headquarters of the bank
BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas (; sometimes referred to as BNPP or BNP) is a French multinational universal bank and financial services holding company headquartered in Paris. It was founded in 2000 from the merger of two of France's foremost financial instituti ...
, designed by
Joseph Marrast, which retained the original facade (example of
facadism
Facadism, façadism, or façadomy is the architectural and construction practice where the facade of a building is designed or constructed separately from the rest of a building, or when only the facade of a building is preserved with new buil ...
).
* At n° 22, the site of the former
Café Tortoni de Paris.
* At n° 26, the site of the former Café de Bade.
* At n° 36, a building created in 1929 by
Michel Roux-Spitz. The ground floor was used as showroom for vehicles by the
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...
. Now, it is a fast food restaurant.
At the corner of
rue de la Chaussée d'Antin was the Dépôt des Gardes-françaises (French Guards' barracks) built by the colonel Duke of Biron in 1764. It gave the name of the boulevard for some years. On 12 July 1789, a platoon of the guards saved his colonel, Duchâtelet, from popular riots.
Le boulevard des Italiens on the website paris-pittoresque.com
/ref>
At the corner of rue Louis-le-Grand, Palais Berlitz, built in the style of the 1930s in place of the Pavillon de Hanovre of the 18th century, which was disassembled and rebuilt in the park of Sceaux.
References
External links
*
Boulevard des Italiens
on ''le site du Paris Pitoresque''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boulevard Des Italiens
2nd arrondissement of Paris
9th arrondissement of Paris
Italiens