In 1804, the 17 hectar
cemetery had a bad reputation because it was situated in a poor
neighbourhood. In 1804, there were only 13 graves and in 1812, 833
graves, which was an insufficient amount.
Therefore, they had to
carry out some publicity campaigns. In 1817, the remains of Moliere and
La Fontaine were taken there. In 1830, there were 33,000 graves. From
1824 to 1850, the cemetery grew five times.
It is the biggest in
Paris and the most famous in the world. Over its 43 hectars there are
70.000 graves, 5300 trees, about a hundred well nourished cats, a real
aviary and 2000000 visitors.
Many celebrities are
burried there. For example: