Hotel de Ville de Bordeaux
A few steps away from St.André Cathedral in Place Pey Berland dominating the center of the old city lies the building of the Hotel de Ville of Bordeaux was initially known as Palais Rohan.
The palace was built as an Archbishop’s Palace that would replace the old Medieval Archiepiscopal residence between 1609 and 1614 by Cardinal François of Escoubleau de Sourdis, archbishop of Bordeaux, who proceeds to do important work to modernize his residence and bring it up to date. He also buys a vast swampy terrain beyond the wall that is transformed into a garden.
This vast space, a place where the people of Bordeaux enjoyed their walks, allows the archbishop to join his estate with the Carthusian convent (of which the Saint-Bruno church is the only most important remnant today). By the middle of the 18th century, the seat of the archbishopric had become run down and uncomfortable.
Archbishop Louis-Jacques d´Audibert de Lussan plans to build a new dignified archiepiscopal palace. To get the funds necessary, he has the idea of selling the wetlands located between the ditches d’Albret (current course of Albret) and the Carthusian monastery. His sudden death on November 15, 1769, causes the project to stop for a while until it is taken over by his successor, Ferdinand-Maximilien-Mériadec de Rohan.
Built from 1772 to 1784 and financed by the selling of the surrounding land to in present-day Mériadeck district, the Palais Rohan becomes the seat of the Girondin’s prefecture in 1800, an Imperial Palace under the Empire, a royal palace after the fall of Napoleon and finally the seat of the City Hall since 1836 up to this day.
The massive structure is separated into the courtyard garden and the archiepiscopal palace that consists on the courtyard side of a large loggia flanked by two low wings on the side of the square. The square courtyard is delimited by a portico punctuated by eight semicircular arches with a monumental entrance in its center. It’s possible to enter and visit the interior of this architectural jewel but only on Wednesday at 2:30 pm or Friday at 10:00 am for EUR 5. If not there are lots of cafes outside to chill and enjoy the beautiful scenery with the assistance of French wine. More
