Place de Jaude

The place de Jaude, in Clermont-Ferrand

The place de Jaude is the most important and liveliest square of Clermont-Ferrand, the beating heart of the city. The Clermont-Ferrand audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this place of life already frequented two thousand years ago in the Roman era, become a marshy zone in the Middle Ages before being reborn in the nineteenth century as a great shopping square, adorned with statues and lined with shops.

History

Two thousand years ago, the place de Jaude was already a true place of life. In the Roman era, it was a market square, a place of passage almost as important as the forum installed on the current place de la Victoire. Yet, in the Middle Ages, it transformed into a deserted square, become over the centuries a marshy zone. It is only from the seventeenth century that it began to be adorned with a few buildings, with the church Saint-Pierre-des-Minimes, a basin and a fountain. But it was necessary to wait for the nineteenth century for its urbanisation to really attract the inhabitants: there was built the great theatre, there were installed symbolic statues, there were opened cafés, shops and shopping arcades. As for its name, it is necessary to go back to the Roman era to understand it: it would come from the word "galate", in reference to the temple of Vasso Galate, a Gallo-Roman building located not far from the city; over time, "Galate" became "Galde", then "Jalde", and finally "Jaude". It is today the most known square of Clermont-Ferrand, with its shopping centres, its terraces and its shops of all kinds.

What to see

Here you discover the most important square of Clermont-Ferrand, a place of life since the Roman era, become marshy in the Middle Ages before being reborn in the nineteenth century as a great shopping square with its theatre and its statues; its name would derive from the Gallo-Roman temple of Vasso Galate. Lively with terraces and shops, the place de Jaude is the beating heart of the city. It is a fine stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

The place de Jaude lies in the heart of Clermont-Ferrand, largely pedestrian and served by the tramway, reachable on foot. It is a square in free access, lined with shopping centres, terraces and shops, that you discover during a walk in the centre.

Where does the name of the place de Jaude come from in Clermont-Ferrand?

It is necessary to go back to the Roman era: the name would come from the word "galate", in reference to the temple of Vasso Galate, a Gallo-Roman building located not far from the city; over time, "Galate" became "Galde", then "Jalde", and finally "Jaude". Already a market square in the Roman era, it is today the liveliest square of Clermont-Ferrand.

Where is the place de Jaude in Clermont-Ferrand?

In the heart of Clermont-Ferrand, in France.