Rue d'Argentine

The Rue d'Argentine is in Paris's 16th arrondissement, in the Chaillot neighborhood, and runs from the Rue Chalgrin to the Avenue de la Grande-Armée. The street is named in honor of the South American country of Argentina. Historically, the short street was laid out on the former promenade grounds of the "Pelouse de l'Étoile," which belonged to what was then the municipality of Passy. It was originally called Rue Neuve-de-la-Pelouse and was incorporated into the Paris street network in 1863. From 1868 to 1947 it bore the name Rue d'Obligado, after a 19th-century military engagement and the Argentine general Lucio Norberto Mansilla. Only after Eva Perón's visit to Paris in 1947 was the street renamed Rue d'Argentine, in order to strengthen diplomatic relations and to acknowledge Argentine aid in France's postwar reconstruction.

For visitors, the street offers a glimpse into the district's eventful history. At number 1, the composer Sergei Prokofiev lived with his pregnant wife from 1928, before the building became a hotel. In the same building, the family of the swindler Alexandre Stavisky took refuge in 1933 during the scandal surrounding him. Number 11 once housed the Consulate General of Algeria. A particularly notable historic site is the shop Au Petit Matelot at the corner of the Avenue de la Grande-Armée, which has stood at this location since 1906 and whose origins go back to 1790. In the 1920s the street also served as the starting point for the haute couture label IRFÉ, founded by the Russian prince Felix Yusupov and his wife Irina. The nearest Metro station, Argentine on Line 1, is located directly across from the end of the street.