Beaublanc
Limoges, France
The first garden settlement in the French town of Limoges.
| Garden City Type: | Mixed (housing association / municipality / other) |
| Country: | France |
| City: | Limoges |
| Years of construction: |
1921 Start construction 1924 Completion
|
| Initiator/client: | Office d'habitations à bon marché de Limoges |
| Architect or related: |
Roger Gonthier Roger Gonthier (November 13, 1884 - July 11, 1978) was a French architect. His main body of work is in Limoges and includes the Pavillon du Verdurier (1919), the garden city Beaublanc, the Cité des Coutures (1925-1932), and the Limoges-Bénédictin railway station (1929). |
| Heritage status: | No |
| General condition of Garden City: | Good condition |
General description
Beaublanc is located in Limoges, in the French department of Haute-Vienne. It lies opposite the municipal stadium of Beaublanc, in a triangular area between Boulevard Beaublanc, Avenue du Parc, and the former militaire barracks. It was built between 1921 and 1923 and opened in 1924.
A few years before the construction of the Cité des Coutures (also designed by architect Roger Gonthier), this was the first construction of the Office d'habitations à bon marché de Limoges (Limoges Cheap Housing Office). This office was created after the First World War and led by councillor Victor Thuillat. He, together with socialist mayor Léon Betoulle and architect Gonthier, were the driving forces behind the construction of healthy, comfortable dwellings for the working class, as an answer to the slums that also plagued Limoges.
The garden settlement was apparently so popular, that lots had to be drawn to decide who was allowed to live at Beaublanc.
Architecture / Urban planning
Beaublanc consists of about about twenty small buildings of two levels and houses 202 two-to-four-room dwellings. The buildings are stone-covered and are surrounded by large grassland plots. Originally the gardens were fenced of from the streets. Public amenities included washrooms and shower baths.
Sources
- Website URL
Wikipedia [in French]
- Publication
Henri Demay, Il était une fois...: Beaublanc. Souvenirs d'un temps de guerre et d'amitiés, 1938-1952, au coeur de la première cité ouvrière de Limoges (Éditions de la Veytizou, 2005).
