Park Montsouris
Originally called Moquesouris (mouse mockery) not without cause as the
abandoned windmills of the barren plain were devoid of grain - even for
the mice.
History
A
place of legend
A place of legends where the giant Isoire was supposed to have confronted Guillaume d'Aquitaine.
At the end of the XVIIIth century, the labyrinthine subsoil inherited from the Montrouge mines, were transformed into catacombs.
Bones from former Parisian cemeteries are piled up here.
A vast formal park, developed during the Second Empire, was part of a plan thought up by Napoléon III and Baron Haussmann to give the capital large green areas at its four cardinal points.
Due to the major constraints presented by the land, in particular the proximity of the railway lines, and interruption during the war of 1870, the work was not completed until 1878, well after the fall of the Second Empire.
The XIVth arrondissement, a peripheral quarter of Paris and uninhabited before 1860, was to become one of the favoured locations for Napoléon III's urbanisation policy with the Parc Montsouris as a major component.
An impression of
vastness
Harmoniously divided here and there by railway lines concealed in
ravines bordered with trees and crossed by little bridges, the park
is a perfect example of the gardens of the Second Empire.
The twisting paths winding up gentle slopes play on perspective and give an impression of vastness. One thousand four hundred trees, some one hundred years old, three vast lawns, countless clusters of perennials and baskets of summer plants. Numerous stone and bronze statues adorn the park which offers many points of interest to the visitor:
The line of the Paris Observatory, the reference point for the Paris meridian line, dating from the time of Napoléon I, the meteorological observatory, the bandstand and the "Pavillion du Lac" restaurant bordering the ornamental lake. There are several playgrounds, entertainment areas and a puppet theatre.
Situated in an area which remains residential, a favourite location for many artists and bordering the Cité Universitaire (student halls of residence ) built by the greatest of architects, the park is an example of the symbiosis between the environment and greenery.
Address :
boulevard Jourdan, avenue Reille
75014 - PARIS
How to get there :
RER B : Cité-Universitaire
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