Victor Hugo (1802-1885) was much more than a writer. He was one of the pioneers of the Romantic style, a poet, a social activist, a philanthropist, a politician, and of course a passionate lover, whose fifty-year love story with Juliette Drouet (1806-1883) you can read about here.
Victor Hugo was born in the city of Besançon in 1802 and achieved fame by the age of 20, when his first poems earned him a stipend from King Louis XVIII (reigned 1814-1824) himself. Even before turning 30, he had already become one of the most famous people in France thanks to the play “Hernani” (1830), which became something of a manifesto for the Romantic movement, and thanks to the novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” (1831). Victor Hugo managed to influence not only the lives of millions of his readers but also the face of Paris itself, where he lived, when thanks to the novel he managed to save Notre-Dame from demolition. Following the rescue of Notre-Dame, renewed interest in Gothic architecture arose in France, which helped preserve other churches, some of which we will encounter during the tour.
Despite his success, he did not rest on his laurels and continued writing while also engaging in politics. Hugo started out as a monarchist, but over the years became a passionate republican who supported human rights and improving the condition of the poor. His political activity made him an enemy of Napoleon III, who seized power in France by force in late 1851, and Hugo was forced to flee France for Belgium and from there to the Channel Islands, first Jersey (1852-1855) and then Guernsey (1855-1870). In 1862, Victor Hugo published his most famous novel, “Les Misérables”. The main character of the novel is ostensibly Jean Valjean, who is pursued by his past. But in my opinion, the real protagonist of this novel is Paris, with its countless monuments, alleys, and people (mostly unfortunate) who populate it while simply trying to survive. On the day the book came out, it was snapped up by readers, who raided every bookstore in Paris, and within a single day every copy had sold out, making a new printing necessary.
Victor Hugo returned to Paris in 1870 following the fall of Napoleon III’s regime. He was elected to the Senate and continued, for the rest of his life, to defend the poor both through politics and through his writing. When he died in 1885, his funeral became the largest public event in Paris’s history, as nearly two million people accompanied him on his final journey from the Arc de Triomphe to the Panthéon, where he was buried.
So whether you’re on a guided tour of Paris or exploring on your own, I truly hope you enjoy this itinerary.
Victor Hugo’s Paris Walking Tour
Instead of a map: under the heading of each stop you’ll find its address, and every address is a link. Click it, and the location will open right away in Google Maps.
Place de la Bastille
We’ll start the tour at Place de la Bastille. This is where Gavroche from “Les Misérables” lived, inside… an elephant. It turns out Victor Hugo didn’t invent this detail. There really was a hollow plaster elephant standing there, built in 1813. It was Napoleon who ordered its construction (elephants were quite a fashionable animal in the 19th century), and it was originally meant to be made of bronze. Over the years the elephant decayed until it was finally demolished in 1846, and the famous July Column, which still stands in the square today, was erected in its place.
Victor Hugo’s First Mistress
From Place de la Bastille, walk along Rue Saint-Antoine and turn left onto Rue du Petit-Musc. If you continue along this street to the corner of Rue de la Cerisaie, you’ll reach a boulangerie where, nearly 180 years ago, one of Victor Hugo’s first mistresses worked. Backtrack to Rue Saint-Antoine, cross the street, and enter Impasse Guéménée, the passage Victor Hugo used to sneak through from his home on Place des Vosges to the bakery where his beloved worked.
Victor Hugo’s House
Enter Place des Vosges and walk to number 6, the Hôtel de Rohan-Guéménée. On the third floor of this building, Victor Hugo lived between 1832 and 1848 with his wife and four children. Here he wrote the play “Ruy Blas” and also began writing “Les Misérables”, which would be published later during his exile on the island of Guernsey, in 1862. The museum, which has free admission, contains quite a few interesting items belonging to the writer, including a reconstruction of his bedroom and the bed in which he died (he did not, of course, die here, but elsewhere in Paris).
Notre-Dame Cathedral
99 rue Saint-Antoine, and parvis Notre-Dame
From Place des Vosges, a somewhat long but lovely walk awaits us. Leave the square through Hôtel de Sully (not because it has anything to do with Victor Hugo, but simply because it’s beautiful). Right nearby, at 99 rue Saint-Antoine, stands the Église Saint-Paul-Saint-Louis, where Hugo married off his daughter Léopoldine (1824-1843) on February 15, 1843, and on that occasion donated two holy water basins that remain there to this day. From there, head out to Rue Saint-Antoine, cross the street, and turn right until you reach Rue François-Miron. Continue along this street until you reach Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe. From there, continue until you reach Île Saint-Louis. Cross the island until you reach Île de la Cité and turn right onto Rue du Cloître-Notre-Dame. There, right next to the bridge, stands Café Esmeralda, named after the beloved of the Hunchback of Notre-Dame. If you’re tired from all the walking, this is a good opportunity to sit and admire the Pont Saint-Louis, and if you’re lucky, there might even be musicians there to set the mood.
Done resting and having your coffee? It’s time to head to Notre-Dame Cathedral, and if you have time to wait in line and enough energy, I highly recommend climbing up close to the top of the cathedral. You’ll feel a bit like Quasimodo from “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame,” but what a view awaits you…
Update: On April 15, 2019, Notre-Dame Cathedral caught fire. After a huge restoration project, it reopened to visitors in December 2024, so this part of the itinerary is back on (climbing the towers requires a separate ticket, best booked in advance).
Lapérouse, Victor Hugo’s Favorite Restaurant
After you finish climbing the towers of Notre-Dame, cross the bridge toward the Latin Quarter and walk right along the Seine. When you reach number 51 quai des Grands-Augustins, you’ll see the restaurant Lapérouse. The restaurant is named after the Comte de Lapérouse (Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse, 1741-1788), one of the famous navigators under Louis XVI (reigned 1774-1792), whose trail vanished in 1788. Victor Hugo used to dine here, and if your wallet allows, I recommend treating yourself to dinner here (if you’d rather not eat, you’re welcome to sit at the bar downstairs).
Église Saint-Germain-des-Prés and the End of the Tour
3 place Saint-Germain-des-Prés
After you’ve finished eating and drinking, head down Rue Dauphine, then turn onto Rue de Buci, and then right again onto Boulevard Saint-Germain. There you can admire the beauty of the church, which was also saved from demolition thanks to Victor Hugo’s efforts.
Continue along Boulevard Saint-Germain to number 222, where the Musée des Lettres et Manuscrits operated until 2015. It displayed letters Victor Hugo wrote to his mistress and to other writers such as George Sand, along with some of his poems in his own hand. The museum has closed, but this corner of Saint-Germain is still a good place to end the walk in the footsteps of Victor Hugo.
Wait, Do You Still Have a Little Energy Left in Your Legs?
If so, you deserve a bonus. Head back along Boulevard Saint-Germain until you reach the intersection where it meets Boulevard Saint-Michel. Turn right and go up Boulevard Saint-Michel until you reach Rue Soufflot on your left. Turn left and walk until you reach the Panthéon. Victor Hugo was buried here in 1885, marking the start of the French tradition of burying the nation’s great figures here (truth be told, this tradition actually began during the French Revolution, but that’s a story for another post).
Practical Information About the Panthéon (If You’d Like to Visit)
Address: Place du Panthéon
Metro: Cardinal-Lemoine, Maubert-Mutualité
Museum type: Paid
Links: Buy tickets | Monument’s official website
Open days and hours: Daily from 10:00-18:00, and from April to September the site is open until 18:30.
A few words about this attraction: A must for fans of French history, since this is where all the great figures of the French nation are buried (Victor Hugo, Émile Zola (1840-1902), and more). I recommend visiting here if you’re doing the Hemingway Paris walking tour, and if you’re already there, don’t miss the lovely Church of Saint-Étienne-du-Mont.
And One More Sweet Thing to Finish
If you love chocolate and other sweets, you’ll be happy to know that although there’s no Victor Hugo pâtisserie, there is a chocolatier called Hugo & Victor, which you can read about in this article.
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