Historical guided tour of Montmartre

Montmartre has long been more than just the hilltop that made it famous. Before being the most touristic district of Paris, it was a popular and working class district surrounding the hillock that the power surmounted the sacred heart.  

From the strikes of the quarry workers of Montmartre in 1789 to the anarchist communities of the Belle Epoque, the place and its inhabitants have long frightened the power. Throughout the 19th century, the district was with and against that a place of organization and sociability of the Parisian labor movement. People lived, worked, danced and debated there. From then on, governments and bosses tried to "organize" the workers via workers' housing estates and places of consumption.

On their side, novelists and painters who settled in this popular Montmartre largely represented these movements in their solidarity, their excess but also their heroic and sometimes tragic stories.

A native of Pierrefitte-sur-Seine, guide and philosopher, Anouk Colombani is interested in popular memory and practices a popular history. She is passionate about the transformation of places in the northern suburbs, and the visible or invisible superimposition of historical periods and experiences. She co-founded the association Rue de la Commune.

Discover all the unusual visits and walks in Montmartre.