The street was built on a land that consisted of gardens named petits champs ("small fields").

A cross (croix in French) was located next to a house in the street, near the Rue des Pélicans.

[1] A part of this public road was opened during the reign of King Philip Augustus.

In 1685, as a part of the re-organisation of the Place des Victoires, King Louis XIV requested the houses of the road to be aligned to open a perspective onto his bronze statue.

On Germinal 3, Year X (March 24, 1802), a ministerial decision signed by Jean-Antoine Chaptal set the minimum width of the street at 10 m. The minimum width was extended to 12 m by a royal order dated May 2, 1837.