Fort Saint-Jean: A Historic Fortification in Lyon
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.6
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- France
- Primary era
- Modern
- Eras represented
- Early Modern, Modern
- Civilizations
- French
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Fort
On this page8 sections
History
Fort Saint-Jean is a historic fortification in Lyon, France, whose origins lie in a bastion built at the beginning of the sixteenth century around Croix-Rousse. The hill and historic district formed part of Lyon’s defensive system against the Duchy of Savoy, a neighboring Alpine state whose political and military power influenced the city’s early modern defenses.
Early Fortifications
The original bastion belonged to the fortified enclosure surrounding Croix-Rousse. The fort itself was not completed until the eighteenth century, reflecting the long development of the defensive works.
In 1639, the Marquis of Halincourt, then governor of Lyon, built the Halincourt Gate at the level of Fort Saint-Jean. Positioned at the fort’s corner, the gate blocked the adjoining quay and formed part of the defenses along the Saône.
Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Use
Construction of the buildings that form the present fort began in 1834. They became part of Lyon’s first belt of forts, a nineteenth-century defensive system surrounding the city.
In 1932, the Military Health Service established its regional pharmacy at Fort Saint-Jean. On 2 September 1944, while German forces occupied Lyon, volunteers gathered at the fort to prevent the occupiers from destroying the bridges over the Saône.
Rehabilitation and Public Administration
The Veterinary Service of the Armed Forces occupied the fort in 1984. Architect Pierre Vurpas rehabilitated it in 2001, and since 2004 the site has housed the National Treasury School. The institution became the National School of Public Finance on 4 August 2010. It trains French public-finance officials, including public-finance controllers, and the fort also occasionally hosts cultural events.
Remains
Physical Layout
Fort Saint-Jean
Fort Saint-Jean stands on the eastern, or left, bank of the Saône in Lyon’s 1st arrondissement. It forms part of the city’s first belt of forts and covers approximately 17,000 square metres. The fort rises about 40 metres above the Saône, measured at the top of its walls. Its present buildings belong to the construction campaign that began in 1834.
Halincourt Gate
The Halincourt Gate occupies the corner of the fort and extends across the adjoining quay. Built in 1639, it was positioned at the fort’s level as a controlled defensive point along the riverfront.
Nearby sites
