Sam S.
Yelp
UNESCO world Heritage listed square in Nancy. It's the main square in town and surrounded with beautiful buildings dating back to the 1700's.
The square was a major project in urban planning, dreamt up by Stanisław I, as a way to link the medieval old town of Nancy and the new town built under Charles III in the 17th century. The square would also be a place royale to honour his son-in-law, Louis XV. The design linked two handsome buildings that already existed: the Hôtel de Ville (now centred on its grand square) and the Hôtel du Gouvernement. The seat of city government and the seat of Ducal government faced each other as complements through a series of rational, symmetrical but varied urban spaces, unequalled in Europe at the time.
We stayed in an apartment right on the square and it was magnificent to step out early in the morning and just admire the empty square. It's a gorgeous piece of architecture in France and one of the finest squares I have seen in a while.
Nancy is a wonderful old city with gorgeous buildings, markets, parks and restaurants. It's also a major university town and well worth a visit.