Montmartre itself developed over the years as a village with steep, winding streets, many composed entirely of steps, leading up to what is now the highest point in Paris. It was from the earliest times a favourite place for artists, notably - at the end of the last century - the Impressionists. Round the base of the hill, dance-halls and night-clubs grew up, creating - with the help of the artists - the whole legend of ‘Gay Paree’. The night-clubs are still there, in the Place Pigalle and Place Blanche and round about. Pigalle, at the end of the Second World War, was an area reserved for American Army officers, and so well guarded by Military Police that the GIs called it ‘Pig Alley’. In Place Blanche is the most famous of all the night-spots, and the oldest though its building is new; the Moulin Rouge. The name means the red mill; the hill of Montmartre was once covered with windmills, some like this one converted to dance halls. The imitation mill in Place Blanche is one of only two remaining. The independent Commune of Montmartre claims that it mills its own flour and grows its own wine - in Paris’ only vineyard. A few bottles a year, that’s all, and ninety percent vinegar.
As the night-clubs began to attract tourists, prices went up in Montmartre and the artists moved out, mainly to Montparnasse; but painters can still be seen exhibiting their work for tourists in the Place du Tertre. If you want a quick portrait or silhouette of yourself, this is the place; as it is for imitation Rembrandts and sentimentalised views of Old Paris. The quality of the paintings is by no means always as high as the prices.
On top of the Butte Montmartre stands, like a huge stone wedding-cake dominating the North of Paris, the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. A basilica is an enormous church which isn’t actually a cathedral because no Bishop has his throne there. This one is newer than it looks. It was built as an ‘Act of National Repentance’ after France declared, fought and lost the Franco-Prussian war in 1870, and it was finished in 1919, when the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, taken into Germany in 1870, were returned to France. I think it’s impressive but ugly; other people have other opinions. To reach the entrance you can spend a metro ticket on the Funicular railway that climbs the hill, or you can walk up the 400 steps. Once inside, another 300 steps will take you up to the dome, where you’re nearly as high as the Eiffel Tower. This, however, is a fairly pointless activity, since even from the bottom step the view over Paris is stunning. Get there, if you can, at dusk; watch the sun set and the lights come on. You’ll never forget it. Behind the church is the bell-tower, in which hangs La Savoyarde, one of the world’s largest bells. It weighs 19 tonnes. Also at the top of the hill you’ll find a reservoir for the drinking-water of Paris and the old village Church of Saint-Pierre, which is charming.
