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HOTEL PONT ROYAL PARIS - Saint Germain des Pres - 4 star hotel - Official site
History of Saint Germain des Près

Hotel Area History

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From Paris’ Saint-Germain to Saint André des Arts, the area of Saint-Germain-des-Près pans centuries, and has attracted numerous figures and artists over its time,  from musicians to French and international writers.

 

The history of the Saint-Germain Area

This history of the left bank of Paris has roots in the Middle Ages when houses were built around the abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Près. Saint-Germain gradually expanded and became attached to the city of Paris in the 17th century. During the period of the French Revolution, the area became a highly strategic location. Revolutionaries Marat, Danton and Guillotin inhabited the area and would meet there. The buildings of the monastery served as a reserve of powder and were destroyed. Nowadays, only ruins remain there. The Saint-Germain area again changed in the 19th century, when Haussmann altered the architecture of the streets. He designed the boulevard Saint-Germain, which has become one of the main streets of the capital.

 

The attraction of Saint-Germain-des-Près 

Saint-Germain-des-Près has attracted for nearly a century many major figures:  musicians, artists, philosophers and writers. Boris Vian, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Jacques Prévert, Giacometti and many others have also graced the area. From Jazz clubs to the Café de Flore, from Odéon to the Saint-André-des-Arts bars, the streets are alive with tourists and souvenirs, mixing past and future.

 

 

 

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