What to see in Metz, a city disputed between Germany and France

Guide to visiting Metz, a city that was once disputed between France and Germany. From the German Gate to the beautiful Cathedral and the Opera.

At the confluence of the Moselle and Seille rivers is the beautiful Metz, capital of Lorraine in France; The urban center is a riot of architecture, art, museums and good food. Today Metz is an active place that houses the headquarters of numerous metallurgical, petrochemical and automobile manufacturing companies and offers tourists and citizens a wide and diversified cultural program.

The ancient capital of the Celtic tribe of the Mediomatrici was called Divodurum, that is, city of the "sacred mountain"; during the roman domination, quickly became one of the most important cities in Gaul, especially thanks to the export of wines and its strategic position, at the crossroads of several military roads.

Border city, in 1648 it became French with the Treaty of Westphalia; this membership lasted until 1871 when it was annexed by Germany. Metz became French again in 1918 although between 1940 and 1944 it was occupied again by the Germans, another parenthesis before definitively becoming a land of France and capital of Lorraine.

Start your Metz visit itinerary by passing through the German door, the German Gate, a wonderful example of medieval-style military architecture: you will be amazed at how powerful the gate appears, enriched with bridges and large arches. Formerly this gate was attached to the walls that surrounded the city; It is not difficult to think that it gave the idea of ​​being impregnable, so imposing and austere it must have been.

Continue the route to reach the heart of Metz, the Place d'Armes, created at the end of the 18th century. In this place you will find the teacher waiting for you. Cathedral of Saint-Étienne French Gothic style, built between the end of the 14th century and the beginning of the 15th century. Thanks to the large area of ​​decorated windows (the largest in France and Europe) that offer an evocative spectacle of colors when the sun's rays seem to filter through the glass, the beauty of this play of light has led the cathedral to receive the nickname "Lanterne". du Bon Dieu”: visit it, it is worth it.

In addition, in Metz Cathedral you can admire the Gothic statues, the very high arches that rise more than 40 meters above the central nave. Once you have finished visiting the cathedral, not far away you can reach the Metz Town Hall, an example of a structure created for military purposes. Inside, in addition to the Town Hall, there is also the Metz tourist office.

A little beyond the Town Hall you can take the opportunity to take a carefree walk through the area dedicated to the famous covered market which offers an infinite number of local products that you can buy, an opportunity to taste traditional cheeses and wines. Don't miss the mirabelles, a variety of small yellow plums that are used to make excellent jams, and the Paris-Metz dessert, a cake made up of two amaretti cookies of three colors, filled with raspberries and mousseline sauce.

From Place d'Armes to Place Saint-Louis, you will have the opportunity to admire wonderful old buildings and porticos that decorate the square in one of the evocative corners of Metz. Another beautiful example of architecture is the Opera House of Metz built between 1732 and 1752. To visit it it will be necessary to reach the Petit Saulcy islet connected to the center of Metz by beautiful stone bridges. In addition to visiting the Theater you can also admire the beautiful Protestant church in neo-Romanesque style.

Thanks to the Center Pompidou-Metz, a kind of support for the most famous cultural center in the city of Paris, Metz is projected onto the international art scene. Events, conferences and exhibitions are held inside the Pompidou Center; the main collection housed in the capital has up to 65.000 contemporary works of art giving Metz the merit of guarding the most important collection in Lorraine.

To get to Metz in flight You can land at the Metz-Nancy-Lorraine regional airport, which is about 20 kilometers from the city center, or at the Luxembourg-Findel airport, from which, however, you will still have to travel about seventy kilometers to get there. to your destination. While for those who decide to reach Metz by train Metz-Ville station is connected to Paris in one hour and 20 minutes with the LGV high-speed line. If you prefer, about 15 kilometers from Metz is the Lorraine TGV station.