Musée historique de la Ville de Strasbourg

The Musée historique de la Ville de Strasbourg stands at 2 Rue du Vieux-Marché-aux-Poissons on the Grande Île, in the Grand Est region of France. It occupies the former municipal slaughterhouse (Grande Boucherie), a building of 1588 with a stone and brick facade, and tells the history of the city from the Middle Ages to the present day. The museum was reorganised and reopened in 1998 after a long renovation of the building. The rooms follow a broadly chronological path: the free imperial city of the Middle Ages and the Reformation, the siege and annexation by Louis XIV in 1681, the 18th century, the Revolution, the German period of 1871 to 1918, and the 20th century with its two world wars. Among the exhibits are weapons and armour, city seals, maps, paintings, scientific instruments and a large collection of objects from civic and military life. One of the best-known pieces is the relief plan of Strasbourg of 1725, a large model of the city made for Louis XV by Jean-Baptiste Pierre, which shows the fortifications and streets in detail. A section on the city under the Third Reich and post-war reconstruction documents the damage of 1944 and the rebuilding. The museum uses a thematic approach in some rooms, with period displays and interactive screens, and offers explanatory text in French with translations in English and German. The building itself has been restored for museum use, and its vaulted ground floor and upper floors retain the character of a medieval market hall. The museum is closed on Tuesday and open other days from about 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, with an admission of about €7.50. Visitors interested in the political history of Alsace will find the museum a useful introduction before visiting the Palais Rohan, the Neustadt or the Barrage Vauban, since it explains how the city passed between French and German rule.