HISTORY OF THE CITY

	- 800		On its way North, the Meurthe River has carved out the hills which surround Nancy today. It is on one of these, hills, mount Sainte Geneviève, that proof is to be found of the first human settlement. There are traces of the extraction of "minette" (a type of iron ore) which the Iron Age man could easily mine. In Nancy, nothing remains of the Gallo Roman period, but the barbarian invasions left the area with a vast Alamanni cemetery.
	about 1050		The ford on the Meurthe River used by man and animals alike, the neighbouring Forest of Haye abounding in game, the negotiable road from north to south and the salt trail from east to west probably led Duke Gérard to build a small fortified town called Nanciacum. Religious orders, such as that of Notre Dame de Molesme, a structured ducal administration, an embryonic court and of course a market quickly contributed to the expansion of the city, which encroached little by little on the suburbs. At the same time, religious institutions multiplied: outside the city, the convent of Saint Jean de Jérusalem and the Cistercian abbey in Clairlieu, and inside, Saint-Epvre Church. The tactlessness of Duke Thiébaut incurred the wrath of his suzerain, Emperor Frédéric II, who subsequently besieged and set fire to the town. From the 12th to the 15th century Nancy, which had risen from its ashes, now encircled by walls and with solid stone houses, prospered and spread until it became the county town and the capital city of the Duchy. In 1298, the dukes' castle was transfered from its original site (present-day Lafayette street) where it was spared from flooding by the Meurthe, to of Grande Rue. Until the 15th century, the dukes succeeded in keeping a balance between the French Realm and the Holy Roman-German Empire, guaranteeing the independance of their duchy. Craft industries and trade were very dynamic. The neighbouring town of Saint Nicolas de Port is a good example as it asserted itself as one of the main commercial (and financial) centres in Europe. Greatly benefiting from its influence Nancy incorporated the very old Saint Dizier suburb, built the Saint Georges ducal funeral chapel in 1339 and the Craffe Gate in the second part of the 15th century. At the same time, the city continued its extension by constructing suburbs to the south.
	1477		The struggle between the rulers of Armagnac and Burgundy shook Lorraine; at the beginning of the 15th century, Lorraine joined the Barrois, thus endowing Nancy with the incontestable status of capital city of the duchy. The Burgundian sovereigns tried to take hold of Lorraine but were stopped by René II who defeated Charles the Bold in January 1477 under the walls of Nancy. Nancy was thus relieved from a particularly difficult siege. The gratitude of the duke took the form of tax exemptions, of the reconstruction of the city walls and of a votive church and adjoining monastry for Cordelier monks.
	1501		The first Renaissance style construction in Nancy was the Duke's Palace, rebuilt by order of duke Antoine. During the Regency of Chrétienne of Denmark, an arsenal and a square for fairs confirmed the use in Nancy of this architectural style.
	1588		The 16th century, with its wars of religion, was full of danger for Nancy. The dukes consequently had to endow it with the most modern fortifications, which were undertaken in the Old Town by two Italian architects Citoni and Galeani, and in the recently built New Town by Stabili, another Italian. The two cities stood close together but their system of fortification was independant, thus underlining the modernity of Charles III's New Town.The programme of the New Town consisted in stone buildings, in a grill of streets, in a sewage system and the creation of more fountains of drinkable water. The construction of a "Primatiale" (a church for the primate), which much later became the Cathedral, as well as the creation of numerous religious foundations epitomized the importance of the Counter Reformation for the dukes. At that time, artistic collaboration between France and Italy intensified.
			The end of the 16th century and the first part of the 17th showed an astonishing contrast. On the one hand the Duchy of Lorraine, whose sovereignty was contested by the King of France, suffered epidemics of plague and a decrease in demography, whereas on the other hand the arts bloomed thanks to the presence of exceptional artists (Jacques Callot, Claude Deruet, Jacques de Bellange, Georges de la Tour...).
	1633		First siege of Nancy by the French.
	1697		The treaty of Ryswick officially put an end to the French occupation; Duke Léopold was thus enabled to come back to his duchy and to put it back on its feet.
			A campaign of reconstruction endowed Nancy with new walls, a new "Primatiale", Saint Sebastian Church, an opera house, a palace that was pretentiously nicknamed the "Little Louvre" (and which was never finished); followed by the construction of numerous private houses for the nobles and the upper middle classes.
	1736		Duke Léopold'son and heir married Maria Theresa of Austria and exchanged his duchy for Tuscany: By the treaty putting an end to the war of the polish succession. The King of France who was given Lorraine put his father in law -Stanislas Leszczynski- at the head of the Duchy which was to revert to France on his death. Like duke Léopold, the former king of Poland did not reside long in Nancy: he prefered Lunéville or Commercy. But in 1738, he had a church built which became the funeral pantheon of his family: Notre Dame de Bonsecours. He had the castle of la Malgrange (in the outskirts of Nancy) transformed and multiplied the number of religious and charitable institutions in the city. Above all he had the Old and the New Town linked by means of an architectural unity: the Royal Square (today called Stanislas Square), Carrière Square (rebuilt in keeping with the style of the day) and Alliance Square.
	1755		Inauguration of the Stanislas Square
	1766		Stanislas died and Lorraine became a French province.
	1769		The University of Pont-à-Mousson was transfered to Nancy. With the construction of a few neoclassical buildings such as the Désilles Gate or the Visitation Chapel (the chapel of Poincaré High School) the city (which was spreading to the west and the north-west) gave an illusion of liveliness. The spirit of adventure died hard and people from Nancy took part in the American War of Independance (in the following century, they contributed to free Greece from the Turkish yoke) and gave the revolutionary army more volunteers than was expected.
	1790		Apart from the events of the Nancy affair -a rebellion of the local garrison that Lieutenant Désilles tried to appease- there were no serious problems during the Revolution. Under the pressure of the patriots, 24 churches were destroyed or sold; in this way, a part of the artistic heritage of the city was lost.
			Demography and the size of the city remained unchanged for a considerable length of time and it was only the creation of the canal in 1838 and of the railway in 1852 thus stimulating exchanges that the city found a new lease of life: residential districts were built to the west and industrial and densely populated districts to the east. The industrialization of Lorraine, with the extraction of coal, iron and salt (and the resulting manufacture of sodium) gave impetus to the craft industries, trade and small industries of Nancy. A regionalistic movement ("Lotharingisme") stimulated the intellectual circles and numerous universities and schools soon opened. The Second Empire was a period of growth for the city. It was marked by the building of a new Saint-Epvre church, a true European manifesto, given the diversity of the donors and the variety of artists who took part in building it.
	1871		The annexation of a part of the French territory increased the importance of Nancy. As an out- post, situated near the border, it was a city full of barracks but, at the same time, it was a place of safety for a great number of industrialists who refused to adopt German nationality. The drift from the land also benefited the city since much housing had to be built.
	1894		The origin of the trend called Ecole de Nancy ("School of Nancy") is to be found in part in the consequences of all the factors mentioned above. This new artistic expression was applied to architecture with civil buildings such as the Chamber of Commerce, villas such as the Majorelle Villa, garden suburb (Saurupt Park) and to the decorative arts. Pastiche and eclectism were to be found in churches (Saint Nicolas, Sacré Coeur) and public buildings (the Poirel cultural complex). The public parks were redesigned. The city was encircled by the railway, a goods station was created, the market was replanned and extended, as well as a slaughter house (now demolished). Schools, gymnasiums, hospitals were revised according to new health regulations and at the same time, squares, monuments in honour of great men from Lorraine, were built in large numbers. The concept of social housing with a garden was supported by many generous leading citizens.
	1901		Foundation of the Provincial Alliance of Art Industries ("School of Nancy")
	1909		The East of France International Exhibition.
	1914		World War I broke out and Nancy was heavily shelled. The "Grand Couronné" battle, which took place not far from Nancy, stopped the enemy advance. National distinctions rewarded the exemplary attitude of the city and of its councillors, who organized networks for food supply, not only for their fellow citizens and war refugees, but also for the people in the neighbouring areas. Between the two wars, several urban planning projects were proposed, but were practically all turned down thus slowing down the extention of the city. It then appeared necessary to link up the neighbouring villages.
	1954		New types of housing were invented to face a housing crisis: council houses and housing developments. The housing estate at the Haut du Lièvre, work of the architect Zerfuss, was started in 1954 and was eventually to the accomodate 15000 inhabitants.
	1959		The Urban District was created with powers of decision in the common interest, powers which formerly lay in the hands of the local councils. It became the Urban Community of Greater Nancy in 1996.
	1983		The 18th Century group of squares is listed as World Heritage by Unesco
	1999		"1999 - L'Ecole de Nancy" - International exhibitions to commemorate the School of Nancy art nouveau movement.
	2005		250th anniversary of Stanislas Square.
	2007		(June) Inauguration of the TGV station serving Nancy http://www.tgvesteuropeen.com
			Luxembourg and the Grande Region - Europe’s Cultural Capital in 2007 In 2007, the idea of a capital of European culture will take on a new dimension. More than a city, the cultural centre of Europe will include an entire region: the Grande Région. The people of Luxembourg and those of neighbouring regions such as Lorraine (F), Rhineland-Palatinate (G), Saarland (G) and Wallonia (B), will forget their frontiers and join together to promote an area with an incredible cultural diversity and vast creative potential.    http://www.luxembourg2007.org