Porte Saint-Pierre is the best-preserved part of the city walls dating back to the Gallo-Roman period in the history of Nantes (3rd century AD). The current structure replaced an old 15th-century building, which, in turn, was erected on the site of a 9th-century fortification. Noble persons have repeatedly passed through the fortress walls. Among them is Henry IV of France who signed the Edict of Nantes in 1598 here. An equally important building is Hôtel de Ville that includes several buildings: Hôtel de Rosmadec, Manoir de Derval, and Hôtel de Monti de Rezé. In front of the Town Hall is a beautiful house entwined with ivy, which also deserves tourists' attention.
The grandiose Grue Titan is one of Nantes' architectural landmarks. This is a complex of two cranes - yellow and gray ones. The first crane (La Grue Jaune) was built in 1954 and worked until the closure of the yards in 1987. It has a weight of 400 tons, a height of 43 meters, and a carrying capacity of 80 tons. Another crane called La Grue Grise ("The Gray Crane") has a slightly lower lifting capacity - 60 tons, and a height of 47 meters. As for its operation, from the moment of its creation in 1966, it worked until 2003. These are some of the structures testifying to the rich industrial past of the city.
Read further...