Pont Métro Cambronne

The Cambronne metro station stands in the fifteenth arrondissement as an elevated structure overlooking the boulevard Garibaldi. It opened in nineteen hundred and six as part of an early extension of the city's subway network. The station sits exactly where a former tax collection gate once stood as part of the eighteenth-century Wall of the Farmers-General. The name Cambronne honors a Napoleonic general who became a figure of French legend for his defiant response to the British at the Battle of Waterloo. While historical accounts vary, the writer Victor Hugo famously attributed a single, colorful, and highly profane word to the general in his novel Les Misérables. This literary connection helped cement the general's name in the public imagination long after his death. The station itself is a notable example of early twentieth-century transit engineering. Much of the metro line here is elevated, utilizing a sturdy viaduct design that avoids the need for deep tunnels. Recent maintenance projects have focused on preserving the station's original architectural character, including the reconstruction of iconic metal staircases and the use of custom-made cast iron columns designed to last for a century.