Place Saint-Louis is a long, narrow square in the centre of Metz, lined on one side by tall medieval houses standing on a row of stone arcades. In the Middle Ages it was the Place du Change, where dozens of money changers, many of them Lombards from Italy, did business under those arches, and the square still looks more Italian than French.
Place Saint-Louis at a glance
- Where: in the old town of Metz, a few minutes' walk from the Cathedral of Saint-Étienne
- Built: the first arcaded houses date from the 13th century; façades were reworked in the Renaissance and the 18th century
- What it is today: a pedestrian-friendly square with shops and cafés under the arcades, and a Christmas market in winter
- Time needed: 20–30 minutes to walk the arcades and look up at the façades
From the money changers' square to Saint Louis
The square follows a very old line. The Roman walls of Divodurum, as Metz was then called, ran here in the 3rd century, and a tower-shaped piece of that wall can still be made out behind one of the façades. In the 13th century, when the city had spread beyond those walls, merchants and changers, mostly Lombards, built houses with arcades on the old foundations. Facing houses closed off a long triangle, the Place du Change, the city's largest market square, where some sixty changers are said to have worked in the 14th century. Merchants came from many lands with their own coins, so changing money was big business in a trading city like Metz.
The name Saint-Louis is the result of a mix-up. In the 18th century a statue of King Louis XIII was put up on the square; people took it for Saint Louis, King Louis IX, and the name stuck. The present statue, which really is Saint Louis, was carved in 1867 by Charles Pêtre and stands at the end where Rue du Change begins. For much of the 20th century the square was a car park; since the end of 2007 it has been a shared zone where pedestrians come first.
What to look for
- The arcades: a long gallery of around sixty arches still shelters shops, just as it once sheltered the changers' counters.
- The crenellated tops of some houses: the battlements were never for defence, but a way for rich families to show off.
- The tall flat façades, called murs-écrans, that hide low roofs behind them, a style borrowed from Italy.
- House no. 29, decorated with a carved hand; it is linked with Perrin Roucel, who was maître-échevin, the head of the city government, in the 1480s.
- Smaller carvings: a console at no. 47, a woman's face at no. 31 and a flower basket at no. 61.
- The statue of Saint Louis with his crown and cape, the king who gave the square its name only by accident.
The glover's hand
A local story explains the carved hand. A glover who lived here is said to have slapped a German during a meeting. He won the lawsuit that followed, and the German was ordered to pay him 300 marks. The glover refused the money and asked instead for the right to carve a hand on his house. Treat it as a tale: it is the kind of story Metz likes to tell about its proud merchant families.
Tips for your visit
- Walk the length of the square on the opposite side first: from there you see the whole row of arcades and the crenellations in one view.
- Look up: most of the details are above the shop signs, on the upper floors.
- Visit in late November or December to see the Christmas market under the medieval façades.
- Combine it with the cathedral and the covered market beside the cathedral for an easy morning in the old town.
Nearby
- Cathedral of Saint-Étienne: a Gothic cathedral with one of the largest expanses of stained glass in the world, including windows by Chagall.
- Place Saint-Jacques: a lively café square in the old town, a few minutes' walk away.
- Temple Neuf: the striking Protestant church built under German rule, on an island in the Moselle.
- Porte des Allemands: a fortified bridge-gate over the Seille, one of the last pieces of the medieval walls.
See Metz with World City Trail
Our Metz scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around two hours, with about 47 minutes of walking. It includes places such as the Cathedral of Saint-Étienne, the Temple Neuf and the Porte des Allemands.
If you prefer a different format, Metz also has a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game.
Play the Metz scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Metz →
Play the outdoor escape game in Metz →
Facts checked in October 2026.