Paris villages : the Butte-aux-Cailles

Butte aux cailles is one of the last districts of the 13th arrondissement to have keep its village charm despite the urbanisation of recent decades. Between the boulevard Auguste Blanqui and the rue de Tolbiac, the uneven cobbled streets, the small, low houses and the squares that can be discovered at the turn of an alleyway have retained a special, timeless attraction. Here and there, between old stalls and renovated artists' studios, nestle works of street art, more or less monumental, by well-known and little-known artists. Annexed to the city of Paris in 1860 and once dotted with mills, the Butte aux Cailles district became famous during the Paris Commune, with the Battle of Butte aux Cailles on 24 and 25 May 1871. A square commemorates this event.