Its name commemorates the Battle of Buzenval, part of the Siege of Paris during the Franco-Prussian War that took place on 19 January 1871.

The station opened on 10 December 1933 as part of the line's extension from between Richelieu–Drouot to Porte de Montreuil.

Its main entrance was originally integrated with the former Palais Avron cinema, which opened in September 1936, replacing a former cinema on the same site, the Grand Cinéma Buzenval that opened in 1913 and closed in 1931 (initially named Casino de Buzenval)[1][2].

As part of the "Un métro + beau" programme by the RATP, the station's corridors and platforms were renovated and modernised on 2 December 2008.

The station is also served by lines 57 and La Traverse de Charonne (501) of the RATP bus network.