La Vieille Charité
Encyclopedia
La vieille charité is a former almshouse
, now functioning as a museum
and cultural centre, situated in the heart of the old Panier quarter of Marseille
in the south of France
. Constructed between 1671 and 1749 in the Baroque style to the designs of the architect Pierre Puget, it comprises four ranges of arcaded galleries in three storeys surrounding a space with a central chapel surmounted by an ovoid dome.
stone from the ancient quarries at Cap Couronne
, with no outward facing windows. On the inside are three arcaded galleries superposed on each other, opening onto an interior courtyard measuring 82m by 45m. In the centre of the courtyard is a harmonious chapel, a round church
, crowned by an ellipsoidal dome and fronted by a portico
in the classical style with Corinthian columns. This Baroque chapel ranks as one of Puget's most original designs.
The almshouses served as workhouse
s for the beggars. Children were found jobs as domestic servants, cabin boy
s or apprentices with seamstresses or baker
s. As time passed the work of la Vielle Charité grew, the number of inmates increasing from 850 in 1736 to 1059 in 1760. As the imprisonment of the poor became less acceptable, the numbers decreased to 250 in 1781.
Spared during the French Revolution
, the building was used as an asylum for "les vagabonds et les gens sans aveu" (vagrants and the dispossessed) in the nineteenth century. It was transformed into a barracks for the French Foreign Legion
until 1922, when it was used to lodge those displaced by the demolition of the district behind the Bourse and later those made homeless by the dynamiting of the Old Port during the Second World War
. Plagued by squatters, pillagers and vandals, it eventually housed 146 families living in squalid and unsafe conditions, a group of around 30 Little Sisters of Jesus
living in equally abject conditions to their charges, and various small concerns, devoted amongst other things to transport, packing of anchovies and ripening of bananas. In 1962 all the residents were rehoused and the building shut down. It was only in 1968, thanks to the intervention of the Minister of Culture
André Malraux
, that funds became available to rescue the buildings, by then in a state of total dereliction. La Vieille Charité was painstakingly restored to its former glory between 1970 and 1986, restoration of the chapel being completed in 1981.
Almshouse
Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people to live in a particular community...
, now functioning as a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
and cultural centre, situated in the heart of the old Panier quarter of Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
in the south of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Constructed between 1671 and 1749 in the Baroque style to the designs of the architect Pierre Puget, it comprises four ranges of arcaded galleries in three storeys surrounding a space with a central chapel surmounted by an ovoid dome.
Construction
The idea of an almshouse for the poor, dedicated to Notre-Dame, mère de Charité (Our Lady, Mother of Charity), was originally conceived in 1622; but it was not until 1640 that a suitable plot of land was acquired, with the first pensioners admitted in the following year. Although the foundation stone was laid in that year, construction commenced only in 1671, following a grand plan of the architect Pierre Puget. It was not completed until 1749, construction being prolonged as the result of reductions to the project imposed by the aldermen of Marseille. The central chapel was erected between 1679 and 1704, although Puget died before its completion.Architecture
The main body of the structure is a rectangle, 112m by 96m, composed of four walls in pink and yellow-tinted molasseMolasse
The term "molasse" refers to the sandstones, shales and conglomerates formed as terrestrial or shallow marine deposits in front of rising mountain chains. The molasse is deposited in a foreland basin, especially on top of flysch, for example that left from the rising Alps, or erosion in the Himalaya...
stone from the ancient quarries at Cap Couronne
La Couronne, Bouches-du-Rhône
La Couronne is a village in the south of France on the Côte Bleue on the Mediterranean coast, notable for its ancient quarries and lighthouses.-Description:...
, with no outward facing windows. On the inside are three arcaded galleries superposed on each other, opening onto an interior courtyard measuring 82m by 45m. In the centre of the courtyard is a harmonious chapel, a round church
Round church
A round church is a special type of church construction, having a completely circular plan. Round churches are often found in Sweden and Denmark and were popular church constructions in Scandinavia in the 11th and early 12th centuries.Round churches should not be confused with the older types of...
, crowned by an ellipsoidal dome and fronted by a portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
in the classical style with Corinthian columns. This Baroque chapel ranks as one of Puget's most original designs.
Historic use
In the seventeenth century the repression of beggars was conducted with great brutality in France. Guards called Chasse-gueux ("beggar-hunters") had the task of rounding up beggars: non-residents among them were expelled from Marseille, and natives of Marseille were shut up in prison. Often the crowd would take the side of the beggars during such arrests.The almshouses served as workhouse
Workhouse
In England and Wales a workhouse, colloquially known as a spike, was a place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment...
s for the beggars. Children were found jobs as domestic servants, cabin boy
Cabin boy
A Cabin boy or ship's boy is a boy who waits on the officers and passengers of a ship, especially running errands for the captain....
s or apprentices with seamstresses or baker
Baker
A baker is someone who bakes and sells bread, Cakes and similar foods may also be produced, as the traditional boundaries between what is produced by a baker as opposed to a pastry chef have blurred in recent decades...
s. As time passed the work of la Vielle Charité grew, the number of inmates increasing from 850 in 1736 to 1059 in 1760. As the imprisonment of the poor became less acceptable, the numbers decreased to 250 in 1781.
Spared during the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, the building was used as an asylum for "les vagabonds et les gens sans aveu" (vagrants and the dispossessed) in the nineteenth century. It was transformed into a barracks for the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
until 1922, when it was used to lodge those displaced by the demolition of the district behind the Bourse and later those made homeless by the dynamiting of the Old Port during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Plagued by squatters, pillagers and vandals, it eventually housed 146 families living in squalid and unsafe conditions, a group of around 30 Little Sisters of Jesus
Little Sisters of Jesus
The Little Sisters of Jesus are a Roman Catholic community of religious sisters inspired by the life and writings of Charles de Foucauld, founded by Little Sister Magdeleine of Jesus .-Little Sister Magdeleine of Jesus 1898 - 1989:...
living in equally abject conditions to their charges, and various small concerns, devoted amongst other things to transport, packing of anchovies and ripening of bananas. In 1962 all the residents were rehoused and the building shut down. It was only in 1968, thanks to the intervention of the Minister of Culture
Minister of Culture (France)
The Minister of Culture is, in the Government of France, the cabinet member in charge of national museums and monuments; promoting and protecting the arts in France and abroad; and managing the national archives and regional "maisons de culture"...
André Malraux
André Malraux
André Malraux DSO was a French adventurer, award-winning author, and statesman. Having traveled extensively in Indochina and China, Malraux was noted especially for his novel entitled La Condition Humaine , which won the Prix Goncourt...
, that funds became available to rescue the buildings, by then in a state of total dereliction. La Vieille Charité was painstakingly restored to its former glory between 1970 and 1986, restoration of the chapel being completed in 1981.
Current use
La Vieille Charité houses a number of different cultural and educational resources:- The Museum of Mediterranean Archaeology, on the first floor, covering oriental and classical antiquities, as well as local Celto-Ligurian archaeology.
- The Museum of Art of Africa, Oceania and Amerindia, on the second floor, containing an unusually collection of artefacts, including masks from Mexico and West Africa and a unique collection of engraved human skulls and trophy headsShrunken headA shrunken head is a severed and specially prepared human head that is used for trophy, ritual, or trade purposes.Headhunting occurred in many regions of the world. But the practice of headshrinking has only ever been recorded in the northwestern region of the Amazon rain forest...
from South America.
- A research library specialising in archaeological documents.
- A school of advanced studies in the social sciences (EHESS).
- Offices of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique.
- On the ground level there are special temporary exhibitions as well as a number of museum shops.