L'hôtel de la Païva

Did you know that there are more than 400 private mansions in Paris? Mostly used for ministries, embassies or museums, very few are still accessible and quite often they have nothing to do with their original function. This is not the case of the magnificent Hotel de la Païva whose first owner had an exceptional destiny.

A wealthy palace

Built in 1865 as the setting for the film The Count of Monte Cristo, this hotel cost half the price of the Opéra Garnier, built 10 years later!
The owner, a Russian adventuress of modest origins who became a Portuguese marquise and then a Prussian countess, spared no expense when she decided to settle at 25 avenue des Champs Elysées.

A neo-Renaissance façade and the eclecticism typical of the Second Empire, with its skilful blend of materials, motifs and influences: it had to stand up to comparison with the many other private mansions already established on the famous avenue since the 17th century (mostly replaced today, unfortunately, by 19th-century commercial buildings).

An amazing destiny

Having become a multimillionaire, her hotel illustrates her revenge: pushed out of the car by a client when she was a courtesan, she had promised herself to have "the most beautiful house in Paris" built opposite the place where she had fallen.

After her second divorce, she lived a great passion with Count Henckel Von Donnersmarck. As he was the cousin of Captain Bismarck, she was suspected of being a spy during the war against Prussia and was exiled to Poland in 1882 where she died two years later at the age of 65.

The fate of an incredible woman, a pioneer of feminism that leaves us today a beautiful legacy of the art of living in the 19th century. Such a pity that the current owner of the premises, the Traveler’s club, doesn't fit into the culture of female emancipation, by limiting its membership... to men only!

Would you like to discover this little-known architectural gem? Visit the Calliopée Art&Culture website to book a guided tour full of anecdotes. A trip back to the Second Empire is guaranteed.

Valérie from Comme des Français

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