Curiosities of La Roche sur Yon !!!

Posted in Europe, France

Once again, coming back from my road warrior trails in my belle France. This one is a special one ,as we came back for the memories for a second time to La Roche sur Yon located in the Vendée department no. 85, in the Pays de la Loire region of my belle France. Therefore, here is my take on curiosities of La Roche sur Yon !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I

The town of La Roche-sur-Yon is 70 km from Nantes, 77 km from La Rochelle, 424 km from Paris, and 215 km from my house, We came from our rental house in Cerizay (see posts) on the roads D960B , D948, and D760 to off street parking at Place Napoléon, It has a good road network, organized as a star around the City ,which is ,therefore at the crossroads of several departmental routes ; naming the main ones such as the D160: Les Sables-d’Olonne, La Roche-sur-Yon  Cholet, Angers, Saumur; The D937: Nantes  La Roche-sur-Yon; The D948: Noirmoutier, Challans  La Roche-sur-Yon  Bournezeau, Fontenay-le-Comte, Niort. La Roche-sur-Yon is also served by an autoroute or highway, the A87 (Angers  La Roche-sur-Yon): exit/sortie 30 La Roche-sur-Yon is linked Angers to La Roche-sur-Yon via Cholet. This highway is connected to the A11, making it possible to directly link Paris to the Vendée, Other sorties or exits are 32 La Roche-sur-Yon Sud, the 31 La Roche-sur-Yon Centre, and 33 La Roche-sur-Yon Ouest.

La Roche-sur-Yon owes its current appearance to Napoleon I, who transformed a small town into a modern city, based on a regular pentagon-shaped plan and equipped with imposing public buildings (prefecture, town hall, theater, court, high school, Saint-Louis church, etc.) distributed around a vast central esplanade (Place Napoléon). The city was founded by imperial decree on May 25, 1804 (it was promoted on the same date to prefecture of Vendée, replacing Fontenay-le-Comte). It was renamed and renamed eight times: La Roche-sur-Yon, Napoleon (under the First Empire, the Hundred Days and the Second Republic), Bourbon-Vendée (under the Restoration), Napoleon-Vendée (under the Second Empire). It returned to its original name in 1870.

Featuring four ponds,the Place Napoléon covers an area of ​​three hectares surrounded by dense and rich vegetation composed of 50,000 flowers, plants, and trees, which inspire tranquility. The square is equipped with deckchairs and grassy areas that allow you to picnic by the water. The ponds of Place Napoléon form a true ecosystem with specific flora and fauna. They operate in a closed circuit, without the supply of drinking water. More than 30,000 flowers, plants and trees adorn the square: maples, palm trees, tulip trees, honey trees, lotuses, rushes, acanthus, marsh irises, water lilies… make this square in the heart of the city center of La Roche-sur-Yon a real green lung. Admire the equestrian statue of Napoléon watching over the city he created in 1804 The equestrian statue was inaugurated on August 20, 1854, the year of the city’s fiftieth anniversary. Napoleon on his horse, in the center of the square Napoleon the emperor, in addition to his bicorne and his horse, has for once his right hand, not in his frock coat as usual, but with all fingers out. The raised arm points to the ground, as if to say that it is there, at this precise spot where the statue and Place Napoléon stand today, the heart of the Pentagon and the City that he wants to build.

Les Animaux de la Place at Place Napoléon, come discover the mechanical bestiary created by François Delarozière of the La Machine company: crocodile, sacred ibis, hippopotamus, Nile perch, dromedary… And become an actor by operating these mechanical sculptures using the levers and controls blended into the plant environment surrounding the pools. Unique in their kind, these unusual mechanical animals are free to visit.

The theater is distinguished by its imposing façade, adorned with a peristyle of columns and pilasters, supporting an entablature and a triangular pediment. Inside, its Italian-style auditorium, built of wood, is richly decorated. In 1888, the balconies were adorned with comedy masks, garlands of flowers, and musical instruments, while the coffered ceiling alternates between representations of the Muses and bouquets of flowers, creating a unique atmosphere. It was fully restored in 2005. The Italian-style Theater on the Place du Théâtre. The story goes that in January 1805, Emperor Napoleon approved a plan for the construction of a “comedy” in the heart of the city, at the expense of the town. However, due to lack of funds, the theater was not inaugurated until 1845, on the site of the former barracks of the First Empire. It replaced a temporary performance hall that had been installed in the market hall since 1811.

The Musée de La Roche-sur-Yon – Espace Malraux houses the largest public collection of works by the Yonnais painter Paul Baudry, with 545 pieces in all media original plates, posters, manufactured objects, books, and periodicals. The museum’s exhibition retraces the journey of an artist in the 19C, from his first classes at the municipal drawing school in La Roche-sur-Yon to the dissemination of his mature works. The museum also features prominently the works of the artist Benjamin Rabier. The tour showcases the museum’s collections around the daily lives of academic artists in the 19C (training, career, commissions), and the conditions under which their works were produced and disseminated. This presentation of the collection is complemented by the organization of thematic or monographic exhibitions of photographs in the Cyel exhibition room.

The Château du Plessis at 172 rue Roger-Salengro has been completely renovated to accommodate the company Cocktail Vision. It is a residence built around 1907 for the Gendreau family, known for its canneries in Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie, but which is also known in La Roche for its cannery built on Boulevard des Marchandises, today Boulevard du Maréchal Leclerc, in 1903.

Other things to see here are the Church of the Sacred Heart, rue Blériot, its construction, located in the district of the same name, was thought during the Great War or WWI and was inaugurated on November 13, 1927, The church that we currently see was completed in 1965, The Municipal Museum, built in 1877, has a rich collection made up of its three areas of predilections that are painting and graphic arts since the 19C, and contemporary photography. Centre Beautour of the Naturalist and Vendée politician Georges Durand , the renaissante house was organized around a house built in 1861. On the death of Georges Durand in 1964, the site of 230 hectares and the collections ( 150,000 insects and 4,000 birds) are bequeathed to the National Museum of Natural History. Beyond the entertainment, events offered, the Centre Beautour presents a permanent and temporary exhibitions .The Maison Renaissance house presents an architecture oscillating between medieval style and ornaments from the Renaissance. The house is now occupied by a center of interpretation on the history and town planning of La Roche-sur-Yon , Built in 1843 in a 4.5 hectare wooded park with a very orderly architecture (neo-classic), the national and departmental stud farm (Haras) Rue du Général Gallieni was designed to accommodate 200 stallions . It is gear to tourism, equine reproduction and species conservation. The abbey of Fontenelles, in Fontenelles, built from 1210 on the outskirts of the city for the thermal virtues of the site.

The City of La Roche sur Yon on its history : https://larochesuryon.fr/la-roche-sur-yon/

The La Roche sur Yon tourist office on its heritage : https://www.destination-larochesuryon.fr/en/the-rock-on-yon/XNUMXth-century-monuments/

The Vendée dept 85 tourist office on La Roche sur Yon : https://www.in-vendee.com/24-hours-la-roche-sur-yon

There you go folks, again, another gem of my belle France ! This is real country off the beaten path trails, Again, nice opportunity to see the town again, good for the soul and memories forever, Again, hope you enjoy the post on curiosities of La Roche sur Yon !!! as I

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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