The Couvent des Jacobins, a ruin church in the heart of Reims, France, was built by the Dominican order in the 13th century. The brothers were invited by Bishop Albéric de Humbert but did not arrive until 1220. They began constructing buildings in 1245 following a gift from the monks of the Abbey of St-Denis, who were their neighbors.
The church of the Preacher Brothers featured three naves and eighteen flying buttresses. On its facade, two suspended turrets framed a double window, and its square bell tower stood next to the apse with a stone spire. The site also contained a library of 1764 books, which were seized in 1791 and given to the municipal library.
One room of the convent served as a meeting place for the inhabitants. It was in this hall that the deputies for the Estates General were elected in 1789, and it later hosted meetings for the Friends of the Constitution club. The ruins were rediscovered in November 1884 after a fire at a nearby dyeing factory.
Today, the remains of the convent are integrated into the Square des Jacobins, which serves as a thoroughfare between rue Hincmar and rue des Jacobins. These vestiges have been listed as historical monuments since May 11, 1981.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nicolo Ciampini
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