Ainay
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Ainay is an area within the Presqu'ile district in the 2nd arrondissement of
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
, to the south of
Place Bellecour Place Bellecour is a large square in the centre of Lyon, France, to the north of the Ainay district. Measuring 312 m by 200 m (62,000 m² or 15 acres), it is one of the largest open squares (without any patches of greenery or trees) in ...
and the north of Perrache. It is best known for its Romanesque church, the
Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay The Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay (french: Basilique Saint-Martin d'Ainay) is a Romanesque church in Ainay in the Presqu'île district in the historic centre of Lyon, France. A quintessential example of Romanesque architecture, it was inscribe ...
. A high-class area, bourgeoise, in the city centre, its buildings mainly date to the
Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * ...
era. It now houses the 2nd arrondissement's town-hall, as well as many shops along its pedestrianised main street, Rue Victor-Hugo. It is served by the Metro station Ampère - Victor Hugo. Several hypotheses have been raised as to its name, which may be linked to ''Athanase'' (
Athanasius Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
) or, more doubtfully, to ''
Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...
''.''Archives historiques et statistiques du département du Rhône'', 1825 p. 313
/ref>


History

The present basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay was previously the monastic church of
Ainay Abbey The Basilica of Saint-Martin d'Ainay (french: Basilique Saint-Martin d'Ainay) is a Romanesque church in Ainay in the Presqu'île district in the historic centre of Lyon, France. A quintessential example of Romanesque architecture, it was inscribe ...
. A rampart was built between 1313 and 1324 to protect the abbey's lands at the request of abbot Jean II de la Palud. The ramparts were strengthened in 1544, but this did not stop the
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
s from devastating the abbey's archives, church and part of its cloister and the ramparts were later destroyed after 1777 to link the area with a new district built on land reclaimed from the river. Palud also built an abbatial palace which hosted several kings of France during the 16th century, when the French royal court was still itinerant rather than having a permanent base in Versailles or Paris. In 1536 the court set up home in Lyon, whilst
Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
was gathering his troops to the south-east of
Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of So ...
to face
Charles V Charles V may refer to: * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise * Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690) * Infan ...
's invasion of
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...
. On 2 August that year the dauphin
Francis Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Francis (surname) Places * Rural M ...
played at a
jeu de paume ''Jeu de paume'' (, ; originally spelled ; ), nowadays known as real tennis, (US) court tennis or (in France) ''courte paume'', is a ball-and-court game that originated in France. It was an indoor precursor of tennis played without racquets, a ...
court "pré d'Ainay" and, getting overheated, drank a glass of iced water which proved fatal (he died a few days later at
Tournon-sur-Rhône Tournon-sur-Rhône (; oc, Tornon) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. It is one of the most populous commune in the Ardèche department, after Annonay, Aubenas, and Guilherand-Granges. Geography It is located on the ...
, aged 18). This event may have dissuaded Francis I from making Lyon his capital despite it being en route to his
Italian Wars The Italian Wars, also known as the Habsburg–Valois Wars, were a series of conflicts covering the period 1494 to 1559, fought mostly in the Italian peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and the Mediterranean Sea. The pr ...
, though a street in the district is named rue François Dauphin after him. The abbots' palace was destroyed during the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
. In 1745 the pont d'Ainay was built to link Ainay with the Saint-Georges district on the
Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name deri ...
's right bank. In the years after 1777 the area expanded and in 1780 the bridge was still located at the confluence of the Rhône and the Saône. A road running south along the route of the old ramparts was named rue des Remparts d'Ainay. Close by is also to be found the "voute d'Ainay", on the site of an old gate into the abbey precinct. An aristocratic district in the 18th century, it shifted to "grande bourgeoisie" residences in the 19th century.


Notes

{{coord, 45, 45, 11, N, 4, 49, 43, E, region:FR_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title 2nd arrondissement of Lyon Quarters of Lyon