Rue Saint-Sulpice (Paris)

Rue Saint-Sulpice
Rue Saint-Sulpice heading toward the Place Saint-Sulpice; in the background, the north tower of Saint-Sulpice Church
Interactive map of Rue Saint-Sulpice
Former name(s)Between the Rue de Condé and the Rue de Tournon:
Rue du Petit-Lion-Saint-Sulpice (1501)
Rue de la Foire (1514-1530)
Rue Combault (1524)
Rue du Petit-Lion (1565)
Rue du Clos-Bruneau (1595)

Between the Rue de Tournon and the Place Saint-Sulpice:
Rue du Petit-Bourbon
Rue Saint-Sulpice (1580)
Petite-rue-Saint-Sulpice (1616)
Rue du Petit-Bourbon (1628)
Rue du 31-Mai (1793)
Rue du Petit-Bourbon (1815)

Between the Rue Garancière and the Place Saint-Sulpice:
Rue de l'Aveugle (1636)
Rue des Prêtres (1642-1652)
Rue des Aveugles (1697-1815)
Length294 m (965 ft)
WidthMinimum: 10 m
Location6th arrondissement, Paris, France
QuarterSaint-Sulpice, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Odéon
Nearest metro stationLine 4 at Saint-Sulpice and Odéon stations, Line 10 at Odéon station
Coordinates48°51′05″N 2°20′10″E / 48.85137°N 2.336226°E / 48.85137; 2.336226
From4, Rue de Condé
To2, Place Saint-Sulpice
Construction
Commissioned1851

The Rue Saint-Sulpice is a street in Paris, located in the 6th arrondissement.[1]

Location and access

The Rue Saint-Sulpice is a public street situated in the neighborhoods of Saint-Sulpice, Saint-Germain-des-Prés, and the Odéon district. It runs along the northern side of the Saint-Sulpice Church.[1]

The area is served by Line 4 at the Saint-Sulpice and Odéon stations, as well as Line 10 at the Odéon station.

Origin of the name

The street is named after the Saint-Sulpice Church, which it borders.[1]

History

The Rue Saint-Sulpice was formed in 1851 through the merger of the former Rue du Petit-Bourbon and Rue du Petit-Lion.[2]

Rue du Petit-Lion

The former Rue du Petit-Lion extended from the Rue de Condé to the Rue de Tournon. Opened around 1500, it was initially called "ruelle descendant à la rue neuve de la Foire" or "ruelle allant à la Foire" (referring to the Saint-Germain Market). By the 17th century, it became known as the Rue du Petit-Lion due to a shop sign featuring a lion. It was also referred to as the "Rue du Petit-Lion-Saint-Sulpice" to distinguish it from the Rue du Petit-Lion-Saint-Sauveur (now the Rue Tiquetonne).[3]

Rue du Petit-Bourbon

The Rue du Petit-Bourbon, connecting to the Saint-Sulpice Church since the 16th century,[1][4] was formed in 1816 by merging two streets: the Rue du Petit-Bourbon (between the Rue de Tournon and the Rue Garancière) and the Rue des Aveugles (between the Rue Garancière and the Place Saint-Sulpice).[5] Located in the former 11th arrondissement, Luxembourg quarter, the Rue du Petit-Bourbon-Saint-Sulpice began at nos. 1–2 Rue de Tournon and nos. 101–70, ending at nos. 1–2 Rue Garancière and Rue des Aveugles. The street numbers were marked in red, with the highest odd number being 9 and the highest even number 12.

The street was likely named after Louis III de Montpensier, whose mansion was located between the Rue de Tournon and the Rue Garancière.[3] It is cited as the "Rue du Petit Bourbon" in a 1636 manuscript. In 1702, within the Louvre quarter, the street had four houses and four street lanterns.[6] In 1792, it was merged into the Rue du Petit-Lion but renamed the "Rue du 31-Mai" in 1793 to commemorate the fall of the Girondins. It reverted to its original name in 1815.[3]

Rue des Aveugles

North of the church, between the current Rue Saint-Sulpice and Rue Mabillon, lay the Cimetière des Aveugles.[4] This small cemetery, one of six under the Saint-Sulpice parish, measured 33 by 28 meters, opened in 1664, and closed in 1784.[note 1] The section between the current Place Saint-Sulpice and Rue Garancière is cited as the "Rue de l'Aveugle" in a 1636 manuscript, later known as the "Rue des Prêtres" (1642), "Rue du Cimetière-Saint-Sulpice," and "Rue des Aveugles" (after 1697).[3] Until the mid-18th century, the Rue des Aveugles extended to the Rue des Canettes, but houses south of this section were demolished to create a small square (part of the current Place Saint-Sulpice).[3] The Rue des Aveugles was incorporated into the Rue du Petit-Bourbon in 1816.[3]

Notable buildings and places of interest

  • The Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa (1936–2025) lived on the street.[7]
  • No. 15: Former brothel "Chez Alys", now demolished. The name of the establishment remains in a mosaic on the entrance floor.[8]
  • No. 21: The writer André Gide lived in the building at the corner of the Rue de Tournon, on the second floor, from the age of six.[9]
  • No. 25: A private building where Pierre Guffroy, a film production designer (five-time César winner and 1981 Oscar winner for Tess), and writer Georges Bataille lived. Bataille resided there from 1 March 1962 until his death on 9 July 1962.[10][11]
  • No. 27: Hôtel de Fougères, a private mansion built in 1630 by architect Charles Chamois (1610–1684) for the Countess of Fougères. It is currently owned by the Paris Bar Association.[12]
  • No. 28: The young Romanian poetess Julia Hasdeu (1869–1888) lived there, commemorated by a bronze plaque with her likeness in bas-relief.
  • No. 29: Former shop of Eulalie Bouasse-Lebel (1809–1898), a publisher of religious images.[13]
  • No. 36: Former brothel catering to ecclesiastical clients, still marked by its distinctive gold-on-sky-blue numbering, as mandated by the police.[14]
  • Place August-Strindberg, at the intersection with the Rue Garancière, occupies the site of the former Chapelle de la Communion, destroyed by fire in 1799.[15]
  • Door at no. 27
  • Plaque at no. 28
  • Former "Rue des Aveugles" marking on Saint-Sulpice Church
  • No. 36, former brothel
  • Distinctive brothel numbering at no. 36

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The 1664 date is questionable, as Jacques Hillairet cites the name "Rue des Aveugles" as early as 1632, suggesting the street may have named the cemetery.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Hillairet, Jacques (1963). Dictionnaire historique des rues de Paris [Historical Dictionary of the Streets of Paris] (in French). Paris: Éditions de Minuit. p. 487.
  2. ^ Alphand, Adolphe; Deville, Adrien; Hochereau, Émile (1886). Ville de Paris: Recueil des lettres patentes, ordonnances royales, décrets et arrêtés préfectoraux concernant les voies publiques [City of Paris: Collection of letters patent, royal ordinances, decrees, and prefectural orders concerning public thoroughfares] (in French). Paris: Imprimerie nouvelle (association ouvrière). p. 257. Archived from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Lazare, Félix; Lazare, Louis (1844). Dictionnaire administratif et historique des rues de Paris et de ses monuments [Administrative and Historical Dictionary of the Streets of Paris and Its Monuments] (in French). Paris: Imprimerie de Vinchon. p. 377. Archived from the original on June 5, 2019. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  4. ^ a b de Rochegude, Félix; Clébert, Jean-Paul (1958). Promenades dans toutes les rues de Paris. La rive gauche et la Seine [Walks through all the streets of Paris: The Left Bank and the Seine] (in French). Paris: Club des libraires de France. p. 191.
  5. ^ Lazare & Lazare (1844, p. 85–86)
  6. ^ de la Caille, Jean (1714). Description de la ville et des fauxbourgs de Paris en vingt planches [Description of the City and Suburbs of Paris in Twenty Plates] (in French). Paris. Archived from the original on June 2, 2025.
  7. ^ Noiville, Florence (14 April 2025). "Mario Vargas Llosa, Prix Nobel de littérature et auteur de « La Tante Julia et le scribouillard », est mort" [Mario Vargas Llosa, Nobel Prize in Literature and author of "Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter," has died]. Le Monde (in French). Archived from the original on April 14, 2025. Retrieved 23 April 2025.
  8. ^ "Petite géographie des maisons closes parisiennes" [A Brief Geography of Parisian Brothels]. Paris ZigZag. Archived from the original on December 3, 2022. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  9. ^ Sheridan, Alan (1999). André Gide: A Life in the Present. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. p. 12. ISBN 0-674-03527-5.
  10. ^ Louvrier, Pascal (2008). Georges Bataille: La fascination du mal [Georges Bataille: The Fascination of Evil] (in French). Paris. p. 168. ISBN 9782268066066.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  11. ^ Bulletin des bibliothèques de France [Bulletin of French Libraries] (in French). Vol. 7. Direction des bibliothèques de France. 1962. p. 475.
  12. ^ "Hôtel de Fougères" [Fougères Hotel]. Structurae (in French). Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2025.
  13. ^ "Eulalie Bouasse-Lebel". Elec ENC Sorbonne (in French). Archived from the original on May 26, 2019. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  14. ^ Teyssier, Paul (2010). Maisons closes parisiennes. Architectures immorales des années 1930 [Parisian Brothels: Immoral Architectures of the 1930s] (in French). Paris: Parigramme. p. 125. ISBN 978-2-84096-634-0. Archived from the original on December 18, 2010.
  15. ^ Leborgne, Dominique (2005). Saint-Germain des Prés et son faubourg : évolution d'un paysage urbain [Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Its Suburb: Evolution of an Urban Landscape]. Paris: Parigramme. p. 639. ISBN 2-84096-189-X. OCLC 62364059.
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