Jardin du Ranelagh (3)

This is the last “chapter” referring to the Jardin du Ranelagh and La Muette. (It will be a bit long, but I wished to finish.)

I already mentioned that what remained of the old royal castle was destroyed in the beginning of the 20th century. The heirs (the family Franqueville) sold the land in different parcels and the area became full of bourgois apartment buildings and also, facing the park, a number of private residences. Some of these residences – “hotels particuliers” - are still occupied as private homes, some as embassy residences. This is one of the most expensive areas of Paris.
On part of what was sold from the old castle area, Henri de Rothschild, built a new castle, a new Château de La Muette, ready in 1922. Rothschild was an active person in many fields; he financed Pierre and Marie Curie, also wrote plays and novels under the name of André Pascal and gave a lot of elegant dinners and receptions here, until he was forced to move out due to the beginning of World War II. In 1940 the building became the headquarters for the German Naval Command and in 1945 the headquarters of the Allied Powers. In 1948 Rothschild sold the property to OEEC which originally was created to administer the Marshall Plan and later became OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) which still resides here. Thirty countries which are supposed to accept democracy and a free market economy are represented by delegations led by an ambassador. Important renovation work of the castle has been ongoing the last years, including also annexes (for a staff of about 2500).

Some of the buildings are older and were already neighbours to the royal garden. One of them, later owned by the family Marmottan, was in 1932 donated to the French State and became a museum, Le Musée Marmottan. . Different donations by e.g. the heirs of a major sponsor of the impressionists (their doctor) and by one of Claude Monet’s sons have contributed to make this museum to the world’s richest in Monet paintings.
It’s also here that you will find the perhaps most famous one, the one that gave the name to the impressionist movement, “Impression Soleil Levant”. (See my post mentioning the first impressionist exhibition - Grands Boulevards 3). You can also find a large number of works by Manet, Morisot, Renoir, Sisley, Degas, Pissarro… . The museum which too often is neglected has also one of the world’s most outstanding collections of illuminated manuscripts from the 12th to the 16th centuries as well a great collection of furniture, statues and paintings from the Napoleonic period.

Together with Paloma, I passed by the park again yesterday. The weather was much warmer than during my previous visit and a lot more kids were playing. A few of the pictures used in the three posts about the Jardin du Ranelagh can be found on my photo blog.

Jardin du Ranelagh (2)

Some more information about Le Jardin du Ranelagh and La Muette (see yesterday's post):

There used to be a railway line passing by here (see map yesterday), part of a circular railway system which was created during the latter part of the 19th century, called “Petite Ceinture” (Inner Circle), which surrounded Paris and also was connected to the major stations like Gare du Nord, Gare Saint Lazare etc…. It was partly underground and partly in open air. This was the last part of this railway to close, in 1985, but a station situated just in front of the park is still there, now as a nice restaurant, ”La Gare” (see top photo). The bar is upstairs and you eat downstairs on which used to be the platforms.

Surprisingly some state visitors were officially welcomed at this small station. You can see a photo of the arrival of Alphonse III, King of Spain, in the beginning of last century.

Part of what was the railway line could possibly become underground parking places; part is today an open wild walking space.

The park was involved in a historic moment in 1783; the first ever human flight was launched at the upper end of the park. The “montgolfière”, which had been invented by the brothers Montgolfier left from here and landed after some twenty minutes and some 10 km (6 miles) in the south-east part of Paris (Buttes aux Cailles). It was piloted by Pilâtre de Rozier (who two years later became the world’s first air accident victim, trying to cross the Channel), accompanied by the Marquess d’Arlande.

There will be a third and last post on this park on Monday. In the meantime, I wish you a nice weekend!

Jardin du Ranelagh (1)

We are now going to visit a park or garden, which is called Jardin du Ranelagh. This is in an area of the 16th arondissement which goes under the name of La Muette. My kids learnt to bike here; we are close to where I used to live until about a year ago.

The name La Muette refers to an old royal castle which once existed here and the name Ranelagh today given to the park comes from an English lord (see below). There is quite a lot to say about this area and the park, so I will make it in two or three episodes.

First a few words about the disappeared castle. It was originally built during the Middle Ages as a hunting residence (this was then far from the city) and was rebuilt several times, the last time in 1743. Among it occupants you can name Queen Margot (married for a while to Henry IV), the future Louis XIII, the Duchesse de Berry, the future Louis XVI and more especially Marie-Antoinette who spent much time here. The main building was destroyed in 1793, but the wings remained and were occupied until the beginning of the 20th century. One of the owners was a piano manufacturer (Erard) and later his heirs. The great park was sold in parcels, including an important part to a Rothschild, who built another castle (now OECD headquarters) in part of the old castle park. Also the rest was sold and the area got full of bourgeois apartment houses and “hotels particuliers” (private residences). Here below I have tried to compare what the area looked like during the 18th century and what it looks like today. One street, rue de Passy, which today is a busy shopping street, still follows the same trace. I will talk about the railway and the still existing station in a following episode.

We can see that part of what used to be a royal park is still there, now as a public park. Obviously it was here in the outskirts of the park, that Lord Ranelagh opened a “rotonde” where concerts and other amusements took place, sometimes attended by Marie-Antoinette and friends.

Let’s now talk about what the park is today: A nice green area, where children can play, where their parents or grandparents can sit on a bench, and where - depending on generation - you can play football (soccer) or at bowls, go on a pony ride, do roller skating, take a tour on a merry-go-round…and - a nice summer day – do sun bathing and picnicking. There are a few statues, including one of Jean de la Fontaine and one of Victor Hugo.

The day I visited the park last week was sunny, but cold and windy, and the activities were limited. Hardly any clients for the pony promenade, the responsible for the merry-go-round hesitated to install the wooden (sorry, today plastic) horses, the marionette theatre was closed...
… and I made an extra post today, see below!

… and at last, today starts the Chinese New Year, the year of the rat, 鼠 , so Xin Nian Kuai Le 新年快乐 and Gong Xi Fa Cai 恭喜发财!!!