Place Des Célestins
History
Before 1307, the square was located on the lands owned by the Knights Templar, who had a command post there.
After the Knights Templar's eviction, the Celestines installed a monastery which, despite some fires, remained for almost 400 years. Eventually demolished in 1778, it was replaced with the housing estate of the Celestines and a theater. In the second half of the 19th century, the plan of major architectural creations through Presqu'île provided for a track linking the rue Mercière and the Place Bellecour to the Place des Célestins. This project was finally cancelled. The square was redeveloped in 1994-1995, during which an underground parking lot was dug. Within the square, a kind of refracting telescope provides a kaleidoscope view of the car park below.
The square has had almost the same appearance since the eighteenth century. Its most notable monument is the Théâtre des Célestins, designed by Gaspard André, and inaugurated in 1877, then in 2005.
See also
References
- ^ "Place des Célestins" (in French). Rues de Lyon. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
- ^ Pelletier, Jean (1986). Lyon pas à pas — son histoire à travers ses rues — Presqu'île, rive gauche du Rhône, quais et ponts du Rhône (in French). Roanne / Le Coteau: Horvath. pp. 30–31. ISBN 2-7171-0453-4.