Halle du Beffroi, Medieval covered market with belfry in Revel, France
Halle du Beffroi is a large covered market hall built as the centerpiece of the town's original design, supported by 79 oak pillars dating from the 14th century. The square structure measures 39 meters on each side and is topped by a neoclassical belfry tower designed by Urbain Vitry in 1834.
The town was founded in 1342 by King Philippe VI, with this market hall designed as the central anchor of a new grid-pattern street layout. Its 14th-century oak columns form the backbone of that original urban design and remain standing today.
Every Saturday morning, local producers and craftspeople gather here to sell their goods under the wooden roof, keeping alive a market tradition that has shaped community life for generations. The activity and local voices inside reveal how this structure remains central to how people in the town connect and do business together.
The hall is most active on Friday and Saturday mornings when the market runs, offering plenty of space to walk and explore the stalls easily. The belfry upstairs provides a good vantage point to see across the town and is managed by the local tourism office.
Over the centuries, this building served multiple roles at once, functioning as town hall, jail, and private residence for the town crier until 1965. This layering of functions reveals how central it was to both civic life and daily routines in town.
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