Montmartre Cemetery – Facts and graves

Montmartre Cemetery – Cimetière du Nord

Montmartre Cemetery, officially called the Cimetière du Nord (Northern Cemetery), was established in 1825. It is one of the four main cemeteries laid out at the cardinal points of Paris in the early 19th century.

Montmartre Cemetery - Hector Berlioz' grave
Hector Berlioz’ grave

These cemeteries replaced the old parish cemeteries, which had been closed due to public health concerns. The remains of six million Parisians were thus transferred to the Catacombes, the Parisian underground necropolis located beneath Place Denfert-Rochereau.

Montmartre Cemetery was opened in the former limestone quarries at the foot of Montmartre Hill. It covers approximately 11 hectares, contains nearly 20,000 graves, and is the third-largest cemetery in Paris after the Père Lachaise and the Cimetière de Montparnasse.

Montmartre Cemetery is renowned for the variety of its funerary art, mausoleums, vaults, and chapels, each reflecting a unique architectural style. Some buildings are indeed massive and extravagant, while others express simplicity and modesty. Over time, some monuments have deteriorated, while others have been reclaimed by nature, enveloped by tree roots.

Paved lanes lined with maples, chestnut trees, linden trees, and cedars crisscross the site and delineate its different sections.

Who was buried in Montmartre Cemetery?

Montmartre Cemetery - Ludmilla Tcherina's grave
Ludmilla Tcherina’s grave

The Montmartre Cemetery is the final resting place of many prominent figures who lived in the neighbourhood during the 19th and 20th centuries. It’s impossible to list them all, but below are a few notable names.

Singers, dancers, and actors

Singer and songwriter Michel Berger, who died in 1992, left a lasting mark on the French music scene. He rests in a simple tomb, protected by a plexiglass window, alongside his wife, singer France Gall, who died in 2018, and their daughter Pauline, who tragically passed away in 1998 at the age of 19.

Rock fans might recognise the name Frédéric Chichin, known as Fred Chichin. He formed the legendary band Les Ritas Mitsouko with his wife, Catherine Ringer and died in 2007 at the age of 53 from a rapidly progressing cancer.

Dalida, the renowned Italian singer, spent much of her life in Paris, where she died in 1987. Although she grew up in Cairo, she became an iconic figure in the French music scene. A memorial statue in her honour stands at the bottom of Rue de l’Abreuvoir in Montmartre, where she lived.

Montmartre Cemetery - Dancer Vaslav Nijinsky's grave
Dancer Vaslav Nijinsky’s grave

You will also find the grave of American singer Carole Denise Fredericks, who lived in France until he death in 2001. She was the sister of the famous blues musician Taj Mahal.

Dance enthusiasts can pay their respects at the graves of prima ballerina Ludmilla Tcherina and the legendary dancer and choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky. His grave is adorned with a statue depicting him as Petrushka, the puppet at the heart of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet.

For film buffs, Francois Truffaut needs no introduction; He was an iconic figure of the French New Wave cinema!

The tomb of Jean Bauchet is also quite remarkable. A former acrobat, Bauchet was the director and owner of the famous Moulin Rouge cabaret before managing the Casino de Paris and the Théâtre du Châtelet. Before his death, Bauchet commissioned the sculptor Richard Bernard to create the magnificent bronze statue of the Homme Nu -Nude Man.

Painters

You will also discover the names of artists who lived in Montmartre in the 19th and early 20th centuries, such as Théodore Chassériau, a renowned painter of the Romantic school.

You will also find the tombs of the painters Gustave Moreau and Horace Vernet, the latter being one of the first artists to settle in Montmartre in the early 19th century.

Montmartre Cemetery - Painter Gustave Guillaumet's grave
Painter Gustave Guillaumet’s grave

Edgar Degas is world-renowned for his numerous paintings of dancers.

Unfortunately, the tomb of Jean-Honoré Fagonard a prominent 18th-century artist, disappeared in the 19th century. Today, a cenotaph commemorates her memory.

The avant-garde art movement of the 20th century is well represented in this cemetery.

You will find the graves of the painter, engraver, and writer Francis Picabia, as well as that of the Romanian Jewish painter Victor Brauner.

You will also discover the tomb of Francisque Poulbot, famous for painting the street children of Montmartre, affectionately nicknamed the “Titis Parisiens” or “Petits Poulbots.”

Louise Weber, better known as La Goulue, was a cabaret pioneer who popularised the French cancan.

And don’t miss the grave of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who immortalised her in his many drawings and paintings.

Writers and poets

The name Rose Alphonsine Plessis, also known as Marie Duplessis, Countess of Perregaux, may not ring a bell at first. However, it will take on its full meaning when you learn that she was the courtesan who inspired Alexandre Dumas‘s iconic novel, La Dame aux Camelias – The Lady of the Camellias.” Both Marie and Alexandre are buried in Montmartre Cemetery.

Montmartre Cemetery - Jean Bauchet's grave
Jean Bauchet’s grave

Théophile Gautier, one of the most renowned French Romantic poet of his time, is also buried there.

Don’t forget the grave of Marie-Henri Beyle, better known by his pen name, Stendhal.

You might be surprised to discover the modest grave of the poet and novelist Alfred de Vigny, discreetly nestled between several imposing chapels and the cemetery wall!

As for Emile Zola, he was initially buried in the family mausoleum. However, his remains were later transferred to the Pantheon, and a cenotaph now adorns the family grave.

Finally, the authors, publishers, and founders of the prestigious literary prize, Edmond and Jules de Goncourt, rest together in the same tomb.

Composers, creators, explorers

Montmartre Cemetery - Painter Andre Charron's grave
Painter Andre Charron’s grave

If you are a music lover, you will undoubtedly want to discover the tombs of the German-born composer Jacques Offenbach and the French composer Hector Berlioz.

The German-born architect Jacques Hittorf, known for designing numerous Parisian landmarks, including the Gare du Nord, the Cirque d’Hiver, the now-demolished rotundas of the Passage des Panaromas, and the prestigious buildings surrounding the Place de l’Étoile, and the Place de la Concorde, is also buried in Montmartre Cemetery.

You will also discover the tomb of the explorer Jean-Baptiste Charcot, as well as that of Jean Marie Joseph Farina, the perfumer to whom we owe the famous Eau de Cologne that bears his name.

This list only gives a glimpse of the many personalities who have left their mark on the history and culture of Paris, and you will need at least half a day to explore the Montmartre Cemetery in detail.

Opening hours: Every day from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., 6:00 p.m., or 8:30 p.m., depending on the season (weather permitting). Access is free, but entry is prohibited 15 minutes before closing time.

Directions: 18th district – Entrance 20 avenue Rachel 
Metro: Place de Clichy on Lines 2,13  then follow rue Caulaincourt
Coordinates: Lat 48.885404 – Long 2.331111

Discover more on Montmartre

Montmartre Village Place du Tertre – Petit Cimetiere du Calvaire – Saint–Pierre-de-Montmartre Church – Saint-Jean-de-Montmartre Church – Sacre-Coeur Basilica – Montmartre Abbey Sanctum Martyrium Crypt – Saint-Vincent Cemetery – Le Passe-Muraille sculpture – Le Mur des Je t’Aime – Abbesses Art Nouveau Metro station – Moulin Rouge – Bateau Lavoir – Montmartre grape harvest festival

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