Place de la République

The Place de la République is one of the main squares of Béziers, a town of the Hérault that is proud of its wine, its canal and its long, sometimes turbulent history. It sits in the centre, where several wide avenues meet, among them the Allées Paul-Riquet, the main promenade of the town, and the square is a natural meeting point for residents. It has had several names over the years, and the changes reflect the history of the place. It was first known as the Place Saint-André and later as the Place des Carmes, names that come from the religious institutions that once stood nearby, and it took its present name after the Revolution. For a period in the twentieth century it was called the Place de la Victoire, after the victory of 1918, and many people in Béziers still use that name.

The feature that people look for is the statue of a lion. Lions are a recurring symbol in the town and recall the courage of the people, and the lion on this square, by the local sculptor Jean Magrou, is a well-known landmark. The original, as the story goes, was moved to a museum to protect it from the weather, and a copy now stands on the square, so what you see in the open air is a replica. The square also contains memorials, and the avenues around it carry the names of important dates and people, among them the 22nd of August 1944, the day of the liberation of the town.

The square lies close to the great walk of the Allées Paul-Riquet, a broad avenue lined with plane trees that forms the social centre of the town, with cafés, a theatre and the statue of Pierre-Paul Riquet, the engineer born in Béziers who built the Canal du Midi in the seventeenth century. The monument by the sculptor David d'Angers stands at the centre of the avenue, and it is a fine place to stop. On summer evenings, the avenue and the neighbouring squares are full of people strolling and eating, and the town holds markets and events there. In August, the Feria, the festival of bullfighting and music, fills the streets with crowds, and the squares become open-air bars.

From the square, you can walk uphill to the old town, with the Cathédrale Saint-Nazaire, which sits on a rock above the river Orb with a terrace that gives a wide view across the valley and the old bridge. The Église Saint-Pierre, the Porte Narbonnaise and the Musée des Beaux-Arts are also close, and the Quartier des Arènes and the Arènes de Béziers are a short walk away. Not far from the town, the nine-lock staircase at Fonseranes on the Canal du Midi is one of the great sights of the region.

The square is open day and night and free to visit. It suits walkers who enjoy a taste of local life, and it makes a convenient starting point for a walk through the centre.