Rue du Chapitre

You’re now entering Rennes most beloved street! It’s an enchanted break from the town’s agitation. Here, you can stroll along the cobblestones, admiring the typical half-timbered facades, private mansions and beautiful boutiques. It’s THE emblematic street of the historic center!  What makes this street so interesting is that here, time mixes and mingles, showing us a coexistence of styles and eras. You will of course recognize the Middle Ages, with the part around the cathedral, which was spared by the Great Fire. But also the Renaissance, with its sculpted decors. Finally, the part reconstructed with stone corresponds to the modern era. The arcades you can see, where the stores and restaurants now have a front-row seat, were used to park and stow carriages. A sort of period parking lot. Times change, life evolves and “Rue du Chapitre” leaves us clues here and there to remind us of the other lives it experienced before you set foot on its cobblestones. A little further down, when “Rue du Chapitre” turns into “Rue du Griffon”, you will see a beautiful medieval house at the corner of the street on the left. It is the “house of the Daughters of Charity”. The Daughters of charity settled in this house in 1683, to hold a soup kitchen in order to help the most deprived in the neighborhood. The house was expanded shortly after, to host their convent. It is now listed as a historic monument. Down the street, you will see a similar house, with red wood sections. It is the “house of the Owl”, also listed as a historic monument. Once you arrive to this point, turn right to get to the cathedral.