A month after Père-Lachaise opened, an imperial decree extended across France the very principle that had motivated its creation. What was it?
The answer
The imperial decree of 12 June 1804 (23 Prairial Year XII) banned burials inside churches and within towns, and required cemeteries to be built at least 35 or 40 metres from town walls: Père-Lachaise, opened a few weeks earlier, became the founding example of this principle.
This question belongs to the “Before the Cemetery” series of the Père-Lachaise quiz: ten questions, a story behind every right answer.