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Père Lachaise Cemetery Trivia Quiz

The Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, the capital of France, actually has a waiting list as plots are so limited. Here are ten questions about a place that is so popular that people are literally dying to get in!

A multiple-choice quiz by zippolover. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
zippolover

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
366,108

Updated
Nov 01 23

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
334

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Although Père Lachaise Cemetery opened in 1804, a few days after Napoleon was declared Emperor, it was named for a cleric in what position? Hint

Priest to the Royal Court at Versailles

Bishop of Bordeaux

Primate of Belgium

Confessor to King Louis XIV

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Question 2 of 10

2. Père Lachaise Cemetery is on which side of Paris? Hint

South

West

East

North

3. There are three Metro stations close to Père Lachaise Cemetery; Philippe Auguste on line 2, Père Lachaise on lines 2 and 3, and Gambetta on line 3. Which station is used most often as it is closest to the side entrance where the tomb of Oscar Wilde stands? Hint

Most visitors use the bus

Père Lachaise

Gambetta

Philippe Auguste

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Question 4 of 10

4. What is the purpose of the columbarium which was erected on the Père Lachaise Cemetery site in 1894? Hint

Tea rooms

Sell maps of the graves

Storing of cremated remains

Flower shop

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Question 5 of 10

5. Due to its position relative to the centre of Paris, Père Lachaise Cemetery was not a popular place for burials until the authorities "supposedly" transferred the remains of which lovers there in 1817? Hint

Pelleas and Melisande

Romeo and Juliet

Abélard and Héloïse

Tristan and Iseult

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Question 6 of 10

6. What happened to Père Lachaise Cemetery in 1824, 1829, 1832, 1842 and 1850? Hint

Flooding

Earthquake

Expanded

Riots

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Question 7 of 10

7. Père Lachaise Cemetery is still a popular site. How do the authorities gain space for more burials? Hint

Graves left untended for thirty years are emptied

All of these

Family members are buried in a single plot, vertically

Coffins are placed on shelves in small mausoleums

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Question 8 of 10

8. What is behind the "Aux Morts" (To the Dead) monument? Hint

River Seine

Section for non-Christians

Section for suicides

Ossuary (bone house)

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Question 9 of 10

9. Oscar Wilde is not the only famous foreign inhabitant of Père Lachaise Cemetery. Which giant of rock music rests there, under a flat stone which bears a Greek inscription? Hint

Jim Morrison

Jimi Hendrix

Elvis Presley

Kurt Cobain

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Question 10 of 10

10. Over whose grave does Euterpe, the muse of music, weep? Hint

Bach

Mozart

Chopin

Beethoven

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Although Père Lachaise Cemetery opened in 1804, a few days after Napoleon was declared Emperor, it was named for a cleric in what position?

Answer: Confessor to King Louis XIV

Père François de la Chaise (1624-1709) was confessor to Louis XIV from 1674 until his own death. He lived in a Jesuit house that became known by his name due to his long life there. The cemetery, commissioned by Napoleon, was built on the site of the Jesuit house.

2. Père Lachaise Cemetery is on which side of Paris?

Answer: East

On the order of Napoleon, four new cemeteries were opened, due to the lack of space in the existing cemeteries. Montmartre to the north, Père Lachaise in the east and Montparnasse in the south. Passy, which is near to the Eiffel Tower and more central, was opened some years after the others, but was also originated by Napoleon.

Answer: Gambetta

By entering Père Lachaise Cemetery from Gambetta station, the visitor is close to the tomb of Oscar Wilde and also looks down across the cemetery and sees the gentle, downhill pathways.

4. What is the purpose of the columbarium which was erected on the Père Lachaise Cemetery site in 1894?

Answer: Storing of cremated remains

A crematorium was also built on site and the columbarium was erected to house urns containing the cremated remains.

Answer: Abélard and Héloïse

Peter Abélard died in 1142 and was buried at St. Marcel, but his remains were moved to where Héloïse d'Argenteuil could tend the grave until her own death in 1163.

The whereabouts of Abélard and Héloïse are still disputed, but the claim by the authorities that the pair were interred at Père Lachaise Cemetery did the trick and its popularity grew enormously.

6. What happened to Père Lachaise Cemetery in 1824, 1829, 1832, 1842 and 1850?

Answer: Expanded

By the end of the twentieth centuary, there were approximately one million bodies in the cemetery.

7. Père Lachaise Cemetery is still a popular site. How do the authorities gain space for more burials?

Answer: All of these

In the twenty-first century, standard plot leases of thirty years were introduced. If the leases are not renewed, the remains are removed and the plot used again.

8. What is behind the "Aux Morts" (To the Dead) monument?

Answer: Ossuary (bone house)

The remains (i.e. bones) that are removed from the Père Lachaise Cemetery graves are tagged and placed in the ossuary. When the ossuary was filled, some remains were cremated and returned. It is thought that the ossuary contains approximately two million bodies.

9. Oscar Wilde is not the only famous foreign inhabitant of Père Lachaise Cemetery. Which giant of rock music rests there, under a flat stone which bears a Greek inscription?

Answer: Jim Morrison

Only people who lived in Paris, or died there, are allowed to be buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery, or any other Paris cemetery.

James Douglas "Jim" Morrison (1943 - 1971) famously died in Paris. His grave markers have been vandalised many times. Eventually his father had the flat stone put in place along with the Greek inscription on a plaque attached "KATA TON DAIMONA EAYTOY", which conveys the sentiment that Jim Morrison stayed true to himself.

10. Over whose grave does Euterpe, the muse of music, weep?

Answer: Chopin

Frédéric François Chopin (1810-1849) lies under a marble statue in Père Lachaise Cemetery, but his heart was returned to Poland, preserved in brandy, taken there by his sister Ludwika.

Source: Author zippolover

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor stedman before going online.
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