History of Lyon

Salle 2 et 3 de l'ancienne muséographie de 2009. 

During Antiquity, the Lyon site comprised : Lugdunum, the Roman colony on Fourvière Hill, Condate, a Gaul town at the foot of la Croix-Rousse, Canabae, a warehouse district on the peninsula, Vesia, an important Gallo-Roman urban community located to the north-west (Vaise).

At the end of Antiquity, when the Roman Empire was declining, the town closed in along the banks of the Saône. This was where a new power emerged during the 4th century, namely the Church.

Up to the 9th century, the town hugged the right bank of the Saône with tiny communities dotted here and there on the hillsides and a narrow band along the left bank.

The martyrs

In the early days of Christianity, Christians who refused to pay homage to the Emperor were periodically persecuted by the Imperial Roman Empire. In 177, among the 48 Lyons martyrs, two in particular stand out : Blandine and Pothin

Salles 6 à 9 de l'ancienne muséographie de 2009.

The town became denser during the 16th century: the districts of Saint-Paul, Saint-Jean and Saint-Georges were populated with tall, narrow houses constructed in the lower region of the Fourvière Hills.

On the peninsula, dwelling places sprung up around Saint-Nizier. Thoroughfares developed outside, in the suburbs of Vaise, la Croix-Rousse and la Guillotière.

In 1562, during the religious wars, Baron des Adrets, who was temporarily in command of the town, had the walls of several monasteries knocked down, opened up the districts of Saint-Paul and Saint-Jean, and cleared the streets (between Bellecour and the rivers in particular) and the squares : Confort and Cordeliers... Short sharp shock town planning, but effective !

Les foires

Depuis le 15e siècle, la ville a obtenu du roi d'organiser 4 foires annuelles. Elles rassemblent chacune jusqu'à 6 000 marchands. L'échange des marchandises est suivi par la foire du change, système de crédit : en se développant, il fait de Lyon une des principales places bancaires du royaume.

Salles 15 à 18 de l'ancienne muséographie de 2009.

The density of the town continued to increase during the 18th century. On the peninsula, land belonging to the church were sold off and divided into plots, and new buildings emerged.

Jacques-Germain Soufflot was the major architect of the century. His credits include the quai saint-Clair (Saint-Clair Quay) on the Rhône to the north of Les Terreaux, and, first and foremost, the reconstruction of the hôtel-Dieu, the outline of which flanked the right bank of the Rhône. He also reshaped the stock exchange.

It was only at the end of the century that the town witnessed a real expansion.

The engineer, Perrache, designed the peninsula extension to the south by carrying out drainage works at the confluence. The architect, Morand, designed a bridge over the Rhône and a new district on the left bank, opposite the town hall.

These advances were to continue well into the next century.

The siege of Lyons, 1793

In Lyon, the French Revolution is marked by a constant political shift between Paris and Lyon : Lyon was radical when Paris was temperate, and vice-versa. These “misunderstandings” culminated in the siege of Lyon by the national armies in 1793. This episode entered the history books of Lyon later on as being symbolic of the period…

Salles 24 à 27 de l'ancienne muséographie de 2009.

In 1852, the communes of Vaise, la Guillotière on the left bank of the Rhône and la Croix-Rousse became part of Lyon.

Under Napoleon III, the Vaïsse prefecture drew up a spectacular regeneration programme for the town centre : refuse collection, public transport, construction of town halls, trade centres, banks and large shops.

Schools, churches, pathways and the Parc de la tête d'Or (park/zoo) were also constructed in an attempt to improve the lifestyle of the inhabitants of Lyon.

Towards the end of the century, the industrial revolution led to the development of industrial districts on the outskirts. They focused on manufacturing and living quarters, like Monplaisir to the east and Gerland to the south.

A symptom of late 19th century Marian piety, the Notre-Dame de Fourvière basilica stood out the Lyon skyline.

A second industrial revolution

Starting with the silk industry, this led to the creation of the chemical, followed by the pharmaceutical industries and to car manufacture. It also heralded the start of the Lumière brothers’ famous cinematograph.