The Rue de la Paix (English: Peace Street; ) is a fashionable shopping street in the centre of Paris. Located in the 2nd arrondissement, running north from the

Place Vendôme The Place Vendôme (), earlier known as the Place Louis-le-Grand, and also as the Place Internationale, is a square in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France, located to the north of the Tuileries Gardens and east of the Église de la Madelein ...

and ending at the

Opéra Garnier The (, Garnier Palace), also known as (, Garnier Opera), is a historic 1,979-seatBeauvert 1996, p. 102. opera house at the Place de l'Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was built for the Paris Opera from 1861 to 1875 at ...

, it is best known for its

jeweller A bench jeweler is an artisan who uses a combination of skills to make and repair jewelry. Some of the more common skills that a bench jeweler might employ include antique restoration, silversmithing, goldsmithing, stone setting, engraving, ...

s, such as the shop opened by

Cartier Cartier may refer to: People * Cartier (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Cartier Martin (born 1984), American basketball player Places * Cartier Island, an island north-west of Australia that is part of Australi ...

in 1898.Paris 2e arrondissement Mémoire des rues; Auteur: Meryem Khouya; Éditeur: Parimagine, 2007

Charles Frederick Worth Charles Frederick Worth (13 October 1825 – 10 March 1895) was an English fashion designer who founded the House of Worth, one of the foremost fashion houses of the 19th and early 20th centuries. He is considered by many fashion historians to ...

was the first to open a couture house in the Rue de la Paix. Many buildings on the street are inspired in design by the '' hôtels particuliers'' of Place Vendôme.

History

The street was opened in 1806 from the Place Vendôme on the orders of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, part of the Napoleonic program to open the heart of the

Right Bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrain alongsid ...

of Paris, both towards the undeveloped western suburbs and to the north. Creating the new street required the demolition of the ancient Convent of the Capucins. At first named the Rue Napoléon, its name was changed in 1814, after the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * Ab ...

, to celebrate the newly arranged peace. During the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (, ) was a French revolutionary government that seized power in Paris on 18 March 1871 and controlled parts of the city until 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard (France), Nation ...

, the street saw a demonstration protesting against the commune government. On 22 March 1871, National Guard soldiers, who were commanded by Jules Bergeret, after being fired upon, fired into a crowd of mostly unarmed marchers that were heading to the Place Vendôme. The resulting bloodshed saw twelve protestors killed and a soldier. The event has been termed the ''Massacre in the Rue de la Paix''. It was the first act of violence against the Parisian citizens since the Siege of Paris ended two months before.

Transport

Based in the centre of Paris, the street can be reached by: * Métro: Line 1 * Or bus: 72.

Retail outlets associated with the Rue de la Paix

Boué Soeurs Boué Soeurs was a French fashion house active from 1899 to 1957. It was founded by sisters Madame Sylvie Montegut and Baronne Jeanne d'Etreillis under their maiden name, Boué. History Sylvie and Jeanne Boué took an interest in design at a ver ...

, a fashion house active from the late 1890s to early 1950s. *

, 1898. *

was the first to open a couture house at 7 Rue de la Paix, and in 1885 created the label of his salon "Worth 7, Rue de la Paix". *

Duvelleroy Duvelleroy is a fan maker and leather goods manufacturer based in Paris, France. The house was founded in 1827 by Jean-Pierre Duvelleroy, and stands today as one of the rare French fan makers still in existence.Lucie Saboudjian, Ph. John Keyser ...

is a fan-maker house established at 15 Rue de la Paix in 1827 by Jean-Pierre Duvelleroy. *

Louis Aucoc Louis Aucoc (21 September 1850 Paris – 10 December 1932 Paris), was a leading Parisian Art Nouveau jeweller and goldsmith, working with his father and brother André. Biography The Aucoc family firm at 6 Rue de la Paix was established in Paris i ...

; the Aucoc family firm at 6 Rue de la Paix was established in 1821.The Burlington Magazine, Vol. 137, No. 1111 (Oct., 1995), pp. 684-687 * Maison Maquet, a luxury stationery and leather goods manufacturer, was located at no. 20 from 1841 to 1846, then at no. 24 from 1847 to 1867, and finally at no. 10 from 1868, where it remained for about a century. * Offenthal is a luxury leather-goods maker established at 24 rue de la Paix in 1935. The boutique closed its doors in 1995. In 1847, all even numbers in the Rue de la Paix south of the junction with the Rue Daunou changed up by two following the redevelopment of no. 4 into two units, becoming nos. 4 and 6. Due to the anomaly of being two no. 14 on the corners either side of the Rue Daunou, the numbers north of this road were increased by four. Therefore, Maison Maguet did not physically move location, it was just their street number within the address that changed. The famous jeweller and clockmaker Athanase Bourdin had his shop at no. 24, as a part of the Hotel Canterbury, with the number of both changing to 28 in 1847 although neither moved location. No. 28 was demolished in 1868 to make way for the new boulevard fronting the Opera House. Prior to 1847, Louis Aucoc had their address as Rue de la Paix 4, only becoming no. 6 after this date.

Rue de la Paix in popular culture

* The Rue de la Paix is the most expensive property in the French version of

Monopoly A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek and ) is a market in which one person or company is the only supplier of a particular good or service. A monopoly is characterized by a lack of economic Competition (economics), competition to produce ...

– the equivalent to "Boardwalk" in the American version, or "Mayfair" in the UK version. * Due to this, the Rue de la Paix is referenced by French singer

Zazie Isabelle Marie Anne de Truchis de Varennes (born 18 April 1964), better known by her stage name Zazie, is a French pop singer and songwriter. Her greatest hits include " Je suis un homme", " À ma place" and "Speed". She co-produces all her alb ...

in her song of the same name, in which she compares societies based on

consumerism Consumerism is a socio-cultural and economic phenomenon that is typical of industrialized societies. It is characterized by the continuous acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing quantities. In contemporary consumer society, the ...

to a game of Monopoly. * The Rue de la Paix is mentioned by

Rhett Butler Rhett Butler (born 1828) is a fictional character in the 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind (novel), Gone with the Wind'' by Margaret Mitchell and in the 1939 film adaptation Gone with the Wind (film), of the same name. It is one of Clark Gable's ...

in the novel ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind ...

'' by

Margaret Mitchell Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (November 8, 1900 – August 16, 1949) was an American novelist and journalist. Mitchell wrote only one novel that was published during her lifetime, the American Civil War-era novel ''Gone With the Wind (novel), Gone ...

as the source of the green bonnet purchased to bring

Scarlett O'Hara Katie Scarlett O'Hara is the protagonist of Margaret Mitchell's 1936 in literature, 1936 novel ''Gone with the Wind (novel), Gone with the Wind'' and the 1939 Gone with the Wind (film), film of the same name, where she is portrayed by Vivien Le ...

out of mourning. * One of the villains in '' Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?'' is named "Rudy Lepay". * Also mentioned in the Noël Coward song: "Parisian Pierrot" (recorded 1936); "...The Rue de la Paix is under your sway..." * Also mentioned in the Leonard Gershe Rodger Edens song "Bonjour Paris" featured in the 1957 film ''Funny Face''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rue De La Paix, Paris Shopping districts and streets in France Paix, Rue de la Jewellery districts