General Leclerc square

You’ve reached General Leclerc square. Opposite you is the new town hall – well, it’s new compared to the old one, because otherwise it’s been here since 1831. And on your right, you’ll see the annex of the town hall, housed in the former church of Saint-Rémy-au-Velours. In 1794, when the town council moved out of the original town hall, it settled in the former palace of Louis VII. During the Revolution, it was only natural that former palaces should be converted into public squares. But after the July Revolution of 1830, it was decided to build a new town hall, demolishing the palace and the 30 meter-high tower of Louis d’Outremer. A few houses were also demolished to create a small square around the town hall, but the church, one of the town’s oldest, was spared and desecrated to serve first as a meeting room for the Friends of the Constitution, and then as an auditorium. It was then that they built an Italian-style theater, which was in use until 1965. Today, it’s been refurbished to serve as an annex to the town hall. Quite the journey for a church, don’t you think?