Hospice Comtesse

The Hospice Comtesse and Rue de la Monnaie

The Lille audio-guided tour has you go up Rue de la Monnaie, the oldest in the city, which houses the Hospice Comtesse. This historic ensemble is one of the most precious witnesses of the medieval past of Lille.

The oldest street in Lille

In the eleventh century, Rue de la Monnaie was the main paved road linking the two gates of the city. It took its present name under Louis XIV, who had the Mint built there. Lined with typical brick houses of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it houses the Hospice Comtesse, a former hospital founded by Countess Jeanne of Flanders, now a museum devoted to the history and the arts of the region.

What there is to see

The Hospice Comtesse presents a sick ward, a chapel, a cloister and collections of art and objects retracing daily life in Flanders. Rue de la Monnaie, with its fine brick façades, its shops and its workshops, is one of the most charming of old Lille. It is a dive into the history and the art of living of the city.

Practical information

The Hospice Comtesse is on Rue de la Monnaie, in old Lille. The street can be walked freely; the visit of the museum follows its own schedule, with a charge, whose opening times may vary with the season and the weekdays.

What is the Hospice Comtesse?

A former hospital founded by Countess Jeanne of Flanders, now a museum devoted to the history and the arts of the region, on Rue de la Monnaie.

Why is Rue de la Monnaie called that?

Because Louis XIV had the Mint built there; it is the oldest street in Lille.