Café de la Paix

The Café de la Paix (French pronunciation: ​[kafe də la pɛ]) is a famous café located on the northwest corner of the intersection of the Boulevard des Capucines with the Place de l'Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. Designed by the architect Alfred Armand, who also designed the InterContinental Paris Le Grand Hotel in which the café is located, the florid interior decor is only exceeded by that of Charles Garnier's Opéra (located across the plaza).[1]

Café de la Paix, Paris
Painting by Konstantin Korovin, 1906
Another view by Korovin

History

The Café de la Paix opened June 30, 1862, to serve the Grand-Hôtel de la Paix (named after the nearby rue de la Paix), whose name was later shortened to Grand-Hôtel.[2] It serviced visitors of Expo exhibition in 1867. Its proximity to the Opéra attracted many famous clients, including Jules Massenet, Émile Zola, and Guy de Maupassant. The Café is also the setting for the poem "The Absinthe Drinkers" by the Canadian poet, Robert Service [3]

During the Belle Époque, visitors to the Café included Sergei Diaghilev, and the Prince of Wales and future King of the United Kingdom, Edward VII.

A radio studio was later installed in the Café, which broadcast the program "This is Paris" to the United States.

On August 22, 1975, the Café was declared a historic site by the French government.[4]

See also

References

Notes

  1. Ayers 2004, p. 172.
  2. Jacques Hillairet, Dictionnaire historique des rues de Paris (Paris: Editions de Minuit, 8th ed., 1985), vol. I, p. 265.
  3. The Absinthe Drinkers Archived 2015-02-21 at the Wayback Machine, Robert Service, retrieved January 22, 2014.
  4. Notice number PA00088909, sur la base Mérimée, ministère de la Culture

Sources

  • Ayers, Andrew (2004). The Architecture of Paris. Stuttgart; London: Edition Axel Menges. ISBN 978-3-930698-96-7.

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