Hôtel de Ville, Limoges

The Hôtel de Ville (French pronunciation: [otɛl də vil], City Hall) is a municipal building in Limoges, Haute-Vienne, western France, standing on the Place Jacques Chirac. It was designated a monument historique by the French government in 1975.

1. History

In medieval times, the city was managed by the consuls who were based in an ancient town hall in Rue Fontgrouleu (now Rue du Consulat) which dated back to 1487. Following the French Revolution, a new town hall was established: the site the council selected was a former convent in Place Saint-Gérald. This was a simple two-storey building with a central bell tower, which was completed in 1811. On 4 April 1871, inspired by the establishment of the Paris Commune, a crowd of revolutionary guardsmen stormed both the town hall and the prefecture, and demanded the establishment of a similar commune in Limoges. In the ensuing melee, shots were fired and Colonel Auguste Billett of the French Army was mortally wounded, although the French Army eventually regained control. After a local resident, Alfred Fournier, died leaving his entire estate to the city in July 1875, the council decided to demolish the old town hall and to erect a new building on the same site. The foundation stone for the new building was laid in July 1879. It was designed by Charles-Alfred Leclerc in the Renaissance style, built in ashlar stone and was officially opened on 14 July 1883. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of 11 bays facing onto Place Léon Betoulle. The central section of five bays featured a series of tall carriage arches on the ground floor, and was fenestrated by tall casement windows with balustrades on the first floor. At roof level, there was a parapet, which was decorated with four medallions, and a central clock tower with an ornate belfry, which was 43 metres (141 ft) high. The end sections of three bays each were fenestrated in a similar style and surmounted by separate mansard roofs. The medallions on the parapet were created by Giandomenico Facchina and depicted the painter, Léonard Limosin, the former chancellor, Henri François d'Aguesseau, the statesman, Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud, and the military leader, Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. The two pediments on either side of the clock were surmounted by statues, sculpted by Tony Noël, representing the industries of goldsmithing and enamelling. A stone fountain, designed and sculpted by Charles Genuys, was installed in front of the town hall in 1893. In May 1940, during the Second World War, the mayor, Léon Betoulle, welcomed the prime minister of Belgium, Hubert Pierlot, and other members of the Belgian government in exile to the town hall in Limoges. Following the death of the former president of France, Jacques Chirac, in September 2019, the address of the town hall was changed to Place Jacques Chirac in 2022.

1. References