Haussmann’s Paris and the immeuble

Abstract

Haussmann’s rebuilding of Paris in the nineteenth century is a defining moment in the history of the metropolis. In certain ways, it would be possible to trace the history of urban planning back to antiquity but the manner and scale of Haussmann’s intervention make it the point of origin for a particular conception of modern urban planning. Under the Second Empire, the state made a concerted effort to bring the whole city under its bureaucratic control, and to reshape it in the name of efficiency and modernity. As Francoise Choay puts it, ‘Paris was the object of the first perfected plan for regularization of a city in the industrial age’ (1969: 15). Much has been written about the process of Haussmannisation, and its effects. And a great deal of this has followed the lead of Walter Benjamin’s writings about the flâneur, and focussed upon the creation of the boulevards and the role of the public, or external, spaces of the city. For many, the most significant effect of Haussmann’s renovations on the art and culture of Paris is that they open up a variety of public spaces for walking (Forgione 2005: 664). This chapter takes the immeuble as its object rather than the boulevards, streets and plazas that have preoccupied so many critics.