Le Cimetière du Père-Lachaise
20e arr.
Taking its name from the confessor of Louis XIV, the Père-Lachaise cemetery was opened in 1804 as a final resting place for Parisians. However, at the time, most Parisians did not want to be buried so far from central Paris in what was then considered a poor country area. Surprisingly, the cemetery was a financial failure in the years after its opening. To attract more people, the bodies of Molière and la Fontaine were transfered to Père-Lachaise in its early years.
Taking its name from the confessor of Louis XIV, the Père-Lachaise cemetery was opened in 1804 as a final resting place for Parisians. However, at the time, most Parisians did not want to be buried so far from central Paris in what was then considered a poor country area. Surprisingly, the cemetery was a financial failure in the years after its opening. To attract more people, the bodies of Molière and la Fontaine were transfered to Père-Lachaise in its early years.
