Montmartre facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Montmartre jms
Montmartre seen from the centre Georges Pompidou

Montmartre is a hill 130 metres high and is also the name of the district which surrounds the hill. It is situated in the north of Paris and famous for its nightlife.

Many artists had studios or worked around the community of Montmartre such as Salvador Dalí, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh.

Name origin

Montmartre means 'mountain of the martyr'; it owes its name to the martyrdom of Saint Denis, who was decapitated on the hill around 250 AD. Saint Denis was the Bishop of Paris and is the patron saint of France.

The hill's religious symbolism is thought to be even older, as it has been suggested as a likely druidic holy place because it is the highest point in the area.

Related pages

Images for kids

  • Montmarte 2 (pixinn.net)

    Montmartre, dominated by the Basilica of the Sacré Cœur

  • Vincent van Gogh - Le Moulin de la Galette

    The Moulin de la Galette, painted by Vincent Van Gogh in 1887 (Carnegie Museum of Art)

  • Chapelle des Martyrs Montmartre Abbey

    The Chapel of the Martyrs of Montmartre Abbey in the 17th century

  • Louis-Émile Durandelle, Construction du Sacré-Cœur, 1882

    Construction of the Sacré-Cœur, 10 March 1882

  • Pierre-Auguste Renoir 064

    The Bal du moulin de la Galette by Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1876) showed a Sunday afternoon dance in Montmartre.

  • Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen - Tournée du Chat Noir de Rodolphe Salis (Tour of Rodolphe Salis' Chat Noir) - Google Art Project

    Théophile Steinlen's famous advertisement for the tour of Le Chat Noir cabaret

  • Butte Montmartre 1

    The view from the butte looking towards Centre Georges Pompidou

  • MontmartreBus

    The Montmartre "petit train" doing its rounds near the Moulin Rouge cabaret

  • Montmatre bordercropped

    The stairs of the Rue Foyatier

  • Vigne de Montmartre

    Vineyard in the Rue Saint-Vincent; the day of the Feast of gardens, 15 days after harvest

  • StPierreParis

    Saint-Pierre de Montmartre (1133) seen from the dome of the Basilica of the Sacré-Cœur


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Montmartre Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.