Lausanne Town Hall, Government building in Place de la Palud, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Lausanne Town Hall stands on Place de la Palud, with its rear facade on Place de la Louve; a passage runs beneath the building linking the two squares. It was built 1673–1675 by architect Abraham de Crousaz on plans by Pierre Rebeur, then raised in 1816 by Henri Perregaux. A belfry tops it, and the roof shape recalls regional farm buildings.

A market stood here from the late 9th century, and covered halls were converted into a town hall between 1454 and 1461. The Council first met in it on 24 January 1469. The present building was erected on the foundations of that predecessor between 1673 and 1675 by architect Abraham de Crousaz to plans by Pierre Rebeur, then raised by Henri Perregaux in 1816.

The name Palud comes from the marshy ground of the old market square. From 1501 the Council and the syndic were elected here rather than at the cathedral, and the ground floor long housed the grain hall until it moved to the Grenette in 1840. A passage under the building links Place de la Palud and Place de la Louve.

The rear facade opens onto Place de la Louve, and a passage runs beneath the building linking the two squares, so you can cross from one to the other without going around. The ground floor, once part market and grain hall, has housed a 225 m² exhibition space since 1953, renovated in 1975 as the "forum de l'hôtel de ville".

The rear facade faces Place de la Louve, and a passage runs beneath the building linking the two squares. The belfry bells were rung to warn of danger, and the roof shape echoes the region's traditional farm buildings.