The goddess sits on top of a column in the centre of the main square. She was built to represent one of the proudest moments of the city's history: in September 1792 Lille was in fact surrounded by 35,000 Austrian soldiers but refused to surrender. Corageously, Lille managed to hold out and the Austrians eventually lifted their siege. The goddes is holding a cannon fuse in her right hand.

The Old Stock Exchange (la Vieille Bourse) was built around 1652, when Lille was part of the Netherlands.    

Beneath its apparent unity, it is in fact made up of twenty-four identical houses, taken from twenty-four merchants! They form a quadrilateral around an arched courtyard . In this courtyard, book stalls can be found, selling all sorts of interesting books, old and modern. Sometimes there are even chess players, who seem to enjoy the peaceful surroundings!

Cathedrale Notre Dame de la Treille is a Catholic cathedral near Place Gilleson . It was built in the early 1900, but was left unfinished for a long time and public funding only allowed its façade to be completed in 1999.

Hospice Comtesse - One of the few surviving reminders of the Counts of Flanders, this building was once  a hospital founded in 1237 by the Countess of Flanders, Jeanne de Constantinople.

To enter, one has to go through a stone archway like a medieval Oxford college. Walking into the former "salle des malades", you can still feel how it once was a haven of peace for the sick. Nowadays, it displays a collection of Flemish art. On the first floor, the former nuns' bedroom forms the gallery where superb paintings of the period from the 15th to the 18th century (Flemish, Dutch and northern French masterpieces) can be admired.

The Opera House  opened in 1923 (replacing another theatre built in 1785 which burnt down).

*************************

Both the interior and exterior are beautifully decorated.

STATUE

P'tit Quinquin is a lullaby composed by Alexandre Desrousseaux in 1853. It tells the story, in the local dialect, of a poor lacemaker who is trying to get her baby to sleep.

Charles de Gaulle House Charles de Gaulle, the most famous citizen of Lille, was born at this house on rue Princesse. He was President of France from 1959 to 1968. He is famous for his appeal to resist the Nazis, made in 1940. The main square in the city is also called Place Charles de Gaulle in his honour.

La Pâtisserie Meert is a famous pastry shop and tea room. One of its specialities is its homemade waffles filled with Madagascar vanilla, enjoyed by General de Gaulle when he was living here.

The Porte de Paris is a triumphant arch completed in 1692, built to mark the capture of Lille in 1667 by the French king Louis the Fourteenth (the "Sun King"). As symbols of strength there are statues of Mars (the god of war) on the left and Hercules on the right.  At the top, Victory places a crown of laurels on the head of Luis XIV.

The Chamber of Commerce This institution was founded in 1701 by Louis XIV but the present building was not erected until 1909. Its architect was Louis-Marie Cordonnier, who designed also the Amsterdam stock exchange.

The belfry, 76 metres high, symbolises the power of the merchant cities.

Palais Rihour (tourist office) This building is a reminder of when the Dukes of Burgundy ruled Lille. It was begun by Philippe the Good in 1453 and completed 20 years later. It was twice damaged by fire, first in 1700 and then in 1916 . Only the main staircase and two superimposed chapels were left undamaged. Nowadays, the ground floor chapel houses the Tourist Office. Upstairs, the “Salle du Conclave” is the former ducal chapel, next to which is a sacristy illuminated by antique stained glass windows.

Town Hall and Belfry  Built between 1924 and 1932, and designed by the architect Emile Dubuisson, it is an impressive building which combines local traditions with modernity.

The staircases, corridors and council rooms display  an important collection of contemporary art, and a unique feature which alone makes it worth a visit is a  fresco by the Icelandic artist Erro which tells the eventful history of the city in comic strip form!

The belfry, inaugurated in 1932, was the first building in France over 100 metres high to be made of reinforced concrete and it remains the highest belfry in the region (104 m), a very recognizable landmark. At its base we find sculptures of the giants who founded the city, Lydéric and Phinaert (see history of Lille, legend). This belfry is listed by Unesco as a World Heritage Site.

Euralille Modern district designed in the1980's and centered around Lille Europe TGV station, showcasing office buildings and a shopping centre. 

The TGV station was designed by Jean-Marie Duthilleul and it boasts super-fast train links to London, Brussels and Paris. (1h to Paris, 30 min to Brussels and 90 mins to London!!)