Chaque rue, chaque escalier de la Butte aurait son anecdote à raconter sur un peintre, un écrivain,
 un poète. Là-haut se sont écrits des chapîtres capitaux de l’histoire de l’art. Petite visite initiatique :

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Accroché aux pentes abruptes d’une colline tout au nord de la capitale, Montmartre n’était en principe pas en mesure d’entrer dans les plans du baron Haussmann, pour qui une rue digne de ce nom ne pouvait qu’être rectiligne et de préférence plate.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ce village conserva ainsi son labyrinthe de ruelles bordées de maisonnettes, et jusqu’au début du XXème siècle, une partie de ses pentes resta couverte d’une végétation assez intense, pour qu’on parlât de maquis.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Mais on ne stoppe pas l’extension d’une ville ! La rue Caulaincourt, puis l’avenue Junot, ont fini par monter à l’assaut de la Butte où ont dès lors poussé des immeubles cossus, imposant de curieux contrastes avec le village.

La basilique du Sacré-Cœur est bâtie là où s’est déclenchée la Commune de Paris en mars 1871. Sa première pierre a été posée en 1875, elle a été consacrée en 1919 !                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Entre l’avenue Junot et la rue Caulaincourt, un escalier, nommé rue Juste-Métivier.

                                                                                                                                                                                                  Cette voie est réservée au seul usage des piétons, qui découvrent le Montmartre aisé.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Hôtels particuliers, superbes immeubles, le versant cossu s’est bâti sur le maquis.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

La rue du Mont-Cenis, tout au nord de la Butte, part quasiment de la place du Tertre pour rejoindre les Maréchaux, juste avant le périphérique.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Ici, elle est photographiée dans sa partie supérieure. Après la rue Caulaincourt, elle redevient une voie comme les autres, voitures, bus, deux-roues  ...                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Place Blanche, célèbre pour son cabaret le Moulin Rouge, une institution que l’on doit à Joseph Oller et Charles Zidler depuis 1889.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Tel que vous le voyez aujourd’hui, il est en tout point identique à celui imaginé en 1889 par Oller et Zidler, qui avaient déjà créé l’Olympia sur le boulevard des Capucines.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Le french cancan en fit le succès, et, en inspirant Toulouse-Lautrec, il assura aux lieux une célébrité éternelle.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            - La Cité Des Fusains -

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Renoir eut ici un atelier, dans la cité des Fusains, dont les maisons à pseudo-colombages étaient d’anciens pavillons de l’exposition universelle de 1889.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Aujourd’hui, il relève de l’utopie de vouloir y habiter  ...  hors de prix !                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Connue dans le monde entier, la maison rose du "Lapin Agile" se présente comme le « conservatoire de la chanson française ».

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Cette petite maison fut construite vers 1850, au moment même où le préfet Haussmann initiait la construction d’imposants immeubles.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Dans les années 1860 y vivait un petit fonctionnaire et sa femme qui improvisa une guinguette au rez-de-chaussée, baptisée "Cabaret des assassins"  ... afin d’attirer les clients !

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Puis une ex-danseuse de french cancan, Adèle Ducerf, reprit l’établissement qui devint "A ma campagne".  Mais l’esprit des lieux exigea une autre enseigne, qui fut commandée au caricaturiste André Gill.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Il dessina ce curieux lapin jaillissant d’une casserole en tenant en équilibre une bouteille ... et le « lapin à Gill » devint « Le Lapin Agile» !

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           A cette époque, la petite maison de la butte Montmartre reçoit une clientèle étonnante : Verlaine, Villiers de l’Isle-Adam, Courteline, Ziem, Clemenceau (alors député).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Cela continuera lorsque la maison sera reprise par Berthe et son fameux Frédé, en 1902.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Aujourd’hui, en participant à la « veillée » qui commence à 21 heures, on s’assied aux mêmes places que Picasso, Salmon, Max Jacob, Mac Orlan, Dorgelès, Carco ...                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 La rue de l’Abreuvoir est pavée, discrète, sinueuse et ... rescapée. En 1867, il fut question de l’agrandir et de la doter de grands immeubles. Les modestes Montmartrois qui y vivaient ont su résister.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               (Source : (Source :  hôtel Du Moulin  3 rue Aristide Bruant
       75018 Paris)