Lyon | France | Rue de la Republique | Week 31

Lyon [italian: Lione; old german: Leyden], founded by the Romans as Lugdunum in 43 BC, but earlier celtic settlements existed. The city lies about 300 km north of Marseille, 350 km west of Milan and about 400 km southeast of Paris. It is the 3rd largest city in France and no. 60 within the european union.

Population: 507.000 [2014] | 415.000 [1990] | 580.000 [1931] | 460.000 [1901]

Lyon is especially known for its history, its unique cityscape, its economical role in France and it is a UNESCO world heritage site. Following its roman foundation it was the Gaul capital for several centuries, before it became the centre of the Burgundian Kingdom. In 1032 it became part of the Holy Roman Empire and it wasn’t before the 14th century, that Lyon finally belonged to France. For centuries the city was the banking centre of France and  the archbishop of Lyon is regarded the highest religious authority in France. Another keystone of the cities importance had been the silk trade, which resulted in the cities numerous silk workshops and a fast growth during industrialisation. Also the Lumière brother invented the cinematographe in Lyon. Today the city is a centre of commerce, of education, the major transportation hub in southern France, the seat of Interpol and the „Capital of Lights“, thanks to its annual light festival Fête des Lumières.

Here we see a part of the Rue de la Republique, the major shopping street in the centre of Lyon, running from the Place Bellecour (right edge) to the Hôtel de Ville (City Hall) further north. This section in the panorama ends at the Place de la Republique (left). The street was originally created in the 1850s with most buildings reflecting the Haussmann style of the era. Notable are the Art Deco style Cinema Pathé (with a golden rooster on top) and the former Le Progrés newspaper headquarters near the right end of the panorama.

Click for larger view:

Lyon street shopping Cinema Pathe Le Progres Architecture

For classic view and more infos about the place:

Rue de la Republique France

Find more streetline previews in our Lyon Architecture overview (german link).

Also finalized and published is this view of the Place Neuve Saint-Jean

Lyon Square Vieux Lyon

A preview of the church Saint Nizier with the adjoining Rue de Brest on its right

Saint Nizier Lyon

Quai Fulchiron across the Saône in the Vieux Lyon quarter, with the Fourviere hill in the background

Saône river panorama Lyon

Görlitz | Germany | Augustastrasse | Week 30

Görlitz [polish: Zgorzelec], first mention as Goreliz in 1071. It is the easternmost city in germany, lying about 80 km east of Dresden, 120 km west of Wroclaw (Breslau) and 120 km north of Prague. Görlitz is the 6th largest city in the german state Saxony and the largest within the region Upper Lusatia (Oberlausitz).

Population: 55.000 [2015] | 72.000 [1990] | 94.000 (1930) | 81.000 [1900]

Görlitz is especially known for its well preserved old town, it is member of the working group historic cities in germany. From its early times the city belonged to the bohemian kingdom, later it became part of Saxony, then Silesia (in Prussia) and finally Germany (incl. GDR). It was a strong trade city in late medieval times, esp. due to its monopoly for woad trade in Bohemia. Görlitz was a member of the Lusatian League and as such held rights similar to free imperial cities for some time. In 1945 the new border between Germany and Poland cut through the city along the Neisse river. It’s eastern part is now an independent city – Zgorcelec in Poland. Economically the city has a long history in the production of trams and trains. Nowadays the city is also a favourite spot for big movie productions, earning it its nickname Görliwood.

The street front above is a section of Augustastrasse, a street full of examples of historicism style, which is common in the areas around the old town centre. Görlitz is also known as a so called Pensionopolis, an attractive city with relatively low rents that attracts the elder and retired people. While the city experienced an economic decline since 1990 it still managed to restore the majority of its historic buildings – in large parts thanks to the anonymous Altstadtmillion (old town million). Between 1995 and 2016 each year the city received an anonymous amount of one million Deutsche Mark (later that amount in Euro) to be spent for reconstructing the old town. The results can be seen all over Görlitz.

Click for larger view:

Architektur Görlitz Sachsen Lausitz Schlesien

For classic view and more infos about the place (german here):

Görlitz Architecture Panorama

We documented more streets and places in Görlitz. Find some previews below. For more views from saxon cities follow the link to our Saxony archive.

A panorama of the central block on the lower market square (Untermarkt).

Untermarkt Görlitz Panorama Foto

The Brüderstrasse between Obermarkt and Untermarkt with the Silesian Museum (left).

streetview Görlitz Brüderstrasse old town streetline

A section of the Obermarkt (Upper Market) from 2011.

Oberlausitz Görlitz Architektur Fassaden

The main station.

Görlitz Bahnhof train station

Strasbourg | France | La Petit France | Week 14

Strasbourg [german: Straßburg; dutch: Straatsburg], founded by the Romans as Argentoratum in 12 BCE, lies 100 km west of Stuttgart, 200 km south of Frankfurt and about 450 km east of Paris, largest city of the french region Alsace and 7th largest city in France.

Population: 274.000 (2012) | 252.000 (1990) | 181.000 (1931) | 151.00 (1900)

Strasbourg is the capital of the Alsace (german: Elsass) region, however today it is also one of the capitals of europe, being the seat of the several european institutions like the Council of Europe and the European Parliament as well as the International Institute of Human Rights. Strasbourg’s historic city centre, the Grande Île, has been declared an UNESCO world heritage site in 1988. Historically the city often changed sides between german or french rulers. Since the late 17th century mainly french, german was still the main language till the end of WWII. Strasbourg is an important economic centre and its port is the second largest on the Rhine after Dusiburg, Germany.

La Petit France is a historic quarter in the centre of Strasbourg, part of its UNESCO world heritage site. Here the river Ill forms a number of channels with half timbered houses lining up on the shores and the narrow streets, most of them dating from the 16th and 17th century. La Petit France is now one of Strasbourg’s main tourist attractions.

Visit our archive for other streetline panoramas from France.

Click for larger view:

Panorama Strasbourg La Petit France

For classic view (german link):

Strasbourg Petit France

In our archive other streets and squares from Strasbourg are documented. Two unfinnished examples can be seen below.

Grand Rue

Strasbourg Grand Rue Panorama

Rue des Grandes Arcades

Architecture Strasbourg Rue des Grandes Arcades