From a bustling marketplace to a grand square, Place de la République has witnessed Lyon’s vibrant history unfold. Place de la République sits at the heart of Lyon’s 2nd arrondissement. It divides Rue de la République, creating a north-south axis. This location places it within a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Originally, Place de la République was a tangle of narrow streets. In the 1850s, during Claude-Marius Vaïsse’s prefecture, a major redesign transformed the area. This included the creation of Rue Impériale, now known as Rue de la République. The square itself was initially called Place Impériale, inaugurated in 1862 during the Second Empire. After the regime’s fall in 1871, it became Place de Lyon. It finally adopted its current name, Place de la République, in 1878. The square’s design was meant to be a perfect rectangle, with a smaller rectangular space south of Rue Childebert. However, the Passage de l’Argue, a covered passageway built in the 1820s, disrupted this symmetry. Its portal was intended to be moved westward, but this never happened, resulting in the square’s slightly irregular northwest corner. Further changes came in 1888 with the construction of Rue du Président-Carnot, cutting diagonally across the northeast corner. This further altered the square’s shape. In 1894, following President Sadi Carnot’s assassination nearby, a monument and statue were erected in his honor in the square’s center. This monument remained until 1973. Then, during the construction of Lyon’s metro Line A, it was largely dismantled and replaced with a fountain designed by Serge Boyer, inaugurated in 1977. Even this fountain was eventually removed, making way for the large water basin that exists today. The widening of Rue Childebert in 1959, which led to the demolition of the Passage de l’Hôtel-Dieu and the construction of a new building, further impacted the square’s southern portion. Place de la République is more than just a square. It’s a reflection of Lyon’s evolution, a place where history and modernity intertwine.
Центральный дом работников искусств
Step through the grand wooden doors of the Central House of the Workers of Art, and you’ll be transported to