City Hall

The Town Hall

The Geneva audio-guided tour presents you with the Town Hall, seat of the cantonal government and a true masterpiece whose origins go back to the fifteenth century.

The political heart of Geneva

Built from 1405, the Town Hall has undergone over the centuries numerous alterations and enlargements to become the imposing edifice one sees today. The political heart of the city, it was the scene of major events: it is here that took place, in 1864, the first Geneva Convention, which founded the International Red Cross and laid the foundations of modern humanitarian law. The building is distinguished by its monumental paved ramp, laid out in the inner courtyard to reach the floors: at the time, one could even climb it on horseback. Seat of the authorities of the Republic and Canton of Geneva, it remains a living place of power, in the heart of the old town, and a precious witness of the institutional history of the city nicknamed the capital of peace.

What there is to see

The Town Hall impresses with its architecture of the fifteenth and following centuries and its famous paved ramp, which one once climbed on horseback. The founding place of the Red Cross, it carries a major humanitarian history. It is an essential monument of the old town, still at the heart of Geneva political life.

Practical information

The Town Hall is on Rue de l'Hotel-de-Ville, in the heart of the old town of Geneva. Seat of the cantonal authorities, its courtyard and its ramp can be discovered according to access conditions to be checked on site.

What major event was held at the Town Hall?

The first Geneva Convention, in 1864, which founded the International Red Cross.

What is special about the ramp of the Town Hall?

It is a monumental paved ramp that one could once climb on horseback to reach the floors.