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Nancy, Lorraine, France

Make the most of your time in Nancy, use the information provided on this web site by clicking on the links to plan your visit.

Nancy is situated in the north-east of France in the province of Lorraine, the region over which it acts as capital. It is hardly surprising that much attention is given to Nancy’s three striking squares which link up the equally impressive Old Town with the newer part of the city. The city is also well-known for its role as a major Art Nouveau centre, a tag it acquired entering the 20th century and which is epitomised in the School of Nancy Museum.

More than 100,000 people are thought to living in the city, with a further 300,000 resident in the surrounding suburbs and regions. It is set right at the heart of Lorraine and so is near to the borders with Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium, while the cities of Strasbourg and Metz are also within reach. There is evidence that the city’s history goes back as far as to 800BC and since that date it has seen a number of conflicts, invasions and rebuilding efforts.

It is the three squares, or places, that have become most prominent in years gone by; so much so that in 1983 they were each brought under the watchful eye of UNESCO as World Heritage sites. Firstly, there is the Place Stanislas (pictured) which brings the city international recognition and was laid in the mid-18th century. It is home to several impressive buildings and has a statue of former Duke of Lorraine, Stanislas Leszczynski, at its centre. The second square is the Place d’Alliance which is much smaller than the Stanislas but was also constructed in the middle of the 18th century. Finally, there is the Place de la Carrière which was used from the 16th century for jousting and then, in the 18th century, two mansions were built adding a symmetrical feel to the square.

In the 16th century the Old Town featured state-of-the-art protective walls although there remain few visible traces to this day. Much restoration work to the Old Town has ensued in recent years and it remains one of the city’s highlights for those coming to visit. The area has an attractive selection of buildings including the Craffe and the Citadelle gates, the Duke’s palace, the Hassonville mansion and the church of the Cordeliers. The New Town, by comparison, was built from 1588 onwards and is set out in a gridded-street system. It is home to treasures such as the 18th century cathedral and a handful of other churches.

Significantly, 1901 saw the foundation of the School of Nancy which was the first Art Nouveau architectural work in the area and set in motion a period of modernisation which has affected the shops, banks, hotels and other buildings in the city. Meanwhile, there are also other aspects of note, for example there is the Triumphal Arch, modelled on an arch in Rome, as well as some botanical gardens, a tramway with tyres and a range of museums, including the Fine Arts Museum and the Museum of Lorraine.
 

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