Cimetière Monumental

Nicknamed Rouen's "PŠre Lachaise". The Monumental Cemetery of Rouen is a picturesque place with wide green paths and the graves of illustrious people. Standing in the hills above the city, it is awarded the certification "Remarkable cemeteries of Europe". A rare award in France, since only Paris, Lyon and Rennes have been awarded before.

This cemetery owes its name to the sumptuous monuments erected on the graves. This was a first in Rouen, when it was opened in 1828. Located north of the city with a panoramic view of Rouen, this is where Gustave Flaubert was buried. It is also possible to see the grave of the Dada artist Marcel Duchamp - always covered with objects and featuring a humorous epitaph: "Besides, it's always the others who die"-, of the sculptor Raymond Duchamp-Villon, of the politician Michel B‚r‚govoy or the one containing the heart of the composer Fran‡ois-Adrien Boieldieu.

You can see several remarkable monuments, including tombstones decorated with the creations of the metal worker from Rouen Ferdinand Marrou. His own grave was added there in 1917. The cemetery is home to some 22,000 graves and covers 10 hectares enclosed by a wall.

This remembrance site is also ideal for walks and is also an open-air history museum. Guided tours are organised to learn more about the different architectural styles of funerary monuments and immerse visitors in the customs and beliefs of the 19th century. Some guided tours are even held after dark by candlelight.