Place Du Capitole And Its Tourists, At Dusk, In Haute Garonne, In Occitanie, France Editorial Image

The fruit of classical town planning and the desire to provide the city with a vast square, the first projects for a “royal square” saw the light of day at the end of the 17th century. However, the gradual clearing of the square did not begin until the beginning of the 18th century. It is also up to the city`s consuls, the Capitouls, to magnify their power by enhancing their “Common House”, the Capitol, including the monumental facade, which involves the best Toulouse artists of the time. , is high at the same time. The Place du Capitole then became the heart of the city: market square, festival square, but also guillotine square during the French Revolution. It was in the first half of the 19th century that the square finally took on its current appearance: the south, north and west sides were successively built in the neoclassical style between 1809 and 1852 on the plans of the city architect, Jacques- Pascal Virebent. . At that time, the Place du Capitole was lined with large cafes, restaurants and hotels, such as Bibent or Florida, which displayed their terraces.