Medieval walk in Beauvais

Starting point and access: Beauvais station.
- TER - Lines between Paris-Nord and Beauvais and between Beauvais and Le Tréport.
Take the only exit, Place de la Gare, on the side of platform 2 (if you arrive on another platform, take the underground passage).

(S/E) When you leave the station, turn left and cross Avenue de la République at the pedestrian crossing. Then turn left, walk past a bar-restaurant on your right and, at the end, turn right into Square Jules Brière. Pass a pond with a statue on your right, then turn right and continue to leave the square on the opposite side.

At the traffic lights, cross Boulevard Jules Brière and follow it to the left. Turn right at the^{first street}, Rue de Villiers de L'Isle-Adam. Continue straight ahead, cross Rue Nelly d'Héricourt and take the^first right, Rue d'Alsace (large brick building, half-timbered houses). At the end, turn left.

(1) Immediately turn right onto Rue d'Agincourt and walk along Place des Halles on your left. At the end of the street, turn right onto Rue des Jacobins. Cross Rue des Cordeliers on the right-hand side. At the next intersection, turn left onto Rue Vincent de Beauvais and walk along the Lycée des Jacobins on your right.

At the stop sign, turn left onto Rue Jeanne d'Arc and note the view of the cathedral opposite. At the traffic lights, turn right onto Rue de Gresves. At the next junction, turn left (Rue de Roncières, not signposted here). At the next intersection, take a dead-end street on the right (Rue de Buzenval, signposted further on) and walk along the Espace culturel François Mitterrand on your right.

(2) At the end, turn left onto Rue du 27 Juin and walk about 100 metres to admire several old half-timbered houses, then retrace your steps.

(2) Continue along Rue du 27 Juin (straight ahead if you have made the round trip, right if you are coming from Rue de Buzenval). At number 37, turn right under a porch and you will come out into a courtyard. Turn left, go out through a small porch, come out onto Rue de Gresves and follow it to the left.

You will immediately rejoin Rue du 27 Juin and follow it to the right. At the roundabout (shopping centre opposite), climb the stairs on the left leading to the Giratoire des Maréchaux.

(3) Cross the avenue at the pedestrian crossing to see the monument in honour of the four French marshals of the Second World War, in the centre of a lawn, as well as the façade of the Lycée Félix Faure on the other side of the roundabout. Retrace your steps.

(3) Follow Rue Jean de Lignières (on the right when coming from the roundabout, on the left when coming from the stairs) and walk along a large car park on your right. After the car park, turn right into a large square and head towards the war memorial. With your back to the monument, go to the opposite side and note the small monument on the right in honour of the Harkis.

Cross the street and enter the courtyard of the Hôtel Dieu. At the end (no. 39), turn right under a porch and climb two flights of steps. At the top, turn left and walk along the boulevard towards Rouen.

After no. 15, go down the stairs on the left. Continue straight ahead along Rue des Bellovaques, passing the Lamotte, Lamartine and Gambetta residences. Go through a metal gate, cross the street and continue straight ahead along Allée de l'Hôtel de Chaalis.

At the end, go down a flight of steps. Cross a street, continue straight ahead for a few metres along the street that curves to the right and turn left onto Rue de l'Échelle. At the end, first turn left then right to pass under a porch. Continue straight ahead, with the cathedral in your sights, along Rue Nicolas Pastour, which becomes a cobbled cul-de-sac (half-timbered houses).

(4) At the end, turn left (remains of ramparts). After about twenty metres, turn right and go under a narrow gate in a brick wall. Walk along the right-hand side of an old half-timbered house located at the chevet of the cathedral.

After the small house, turn right onto Voie du Chasse-Marée, which further on becomes Rue de l'Abbé Gelée. Walk along the cathedral on your left and pass in front of its north gate. Then take the^first left, Rue du Musée.

Just before you reach a large square, go through the entrance gate to the Musée de l'Oise on your right. Walk around the garden in an anti-clockwise direction to go past the Renaissance castle and its outbuildings. Go under a porch to come out near the entrance gate.

Go straight ahead onto the square, noting the remains of the Church of Notre-Dame de la Basse Œuvre on your left, and you will arrive at the foot of the cathedral façade.

(5) Continue straight ahead (to the left as you leave the cathedral after a visit, if you wish) and pass by the remains of the Saint-Barthélémy Collegiate Church. At the traffic lights, continue straight ahead into Rue Saint-Pierre and take the^first right, Rue de la Taillerie.

Then cross Place Jeanne Hachette straight ahead. Walk past the Town Hall on your left, cross a street and turn left into Rue de l'Étamine. Cross Place Saint-Étienne and you will reach the entrance to the church of the same name.

(6) Continue straight ahead, take the^first right, Rue Engrand Leprince, and pass under a porch. At the stop sign, turn left onto Rue Desgroux. Take the^first right, Rue Préville, and immediately turn left into Square Boileau. On the other side, follow Rue du Maréchal de Boufflers to the right.

At the car park entrance, turn left. Cross the boulevard at the pedestrian crossing, follow the cycle signs, go through a chicane and take the bridges that cross the Thérain and its tributary, the Avelon (remains of fortifications on the left).

You will come out onto a narrow street (with brick workers' houses). Follow it to the left and cross the Thérain again via a footbridge. Pass by the foot of the Tour Boileau and follow the river along a gravel path. At the park exit, turn left then right to cross at the traffic lights.

Immediately afterwards, turn right into Square Fernand Watteeuw. At the end, take the footbridge on the right over the Thérain (not shown on the map). At the end of the footbridge, turn left and cross a park on the banks of the Thérain. When you reach a playground, turn left and cross the Thérain again.

Then turn right and go under the road bridge. Walk along Boulevard Aristide Briand and the car park of the same name. At the level crossing, cross the street at the pedestrian crossing and, as the boulevard turns left, continue straight ahead on a cement path. Walk along the boulevard, then turn right to walk along Avenue de la République. Continue straight ahead to the station (S/E).

Train timetables: consult the SNCF website.

For motorists:
Several car parks are available along the route:
- Station car park (S/E).
- Place des Halles (1).
- Verdun car park, shortly after (3).
- Car park along Rue du Maréchal de Boufflers, after (6).
- Briand car park, just after the road bridge and before the station (S/E).

Good trainers are sufficient for this urban route.

Bars, restaurants and shops along the route, particularly near the station, Place des Halles and between the cathedral and Place Jeanne Hachette.

A detailed map is required (at least the one accompanying this description).

Hike completed by the author on 9 January 2019.

From the station (S/E) to Rue du 27 Juin (2):
- Half-timbered houses, Rue d'Alsace.
- Grande Place des Halles (1).
- Lycée des Jacobins.

From Rue du 27 Juin (2) to Rue Ricard (4):
- Numerous half-timbered houses on Rue du 27 Juin.
- Courtyard and half-timbered house.
- Monument to the four marshals of the Second World War (3).
- Façade of the Félix Faure High School (3).
- War memorial, after (3).

From Rue Ricard (4) to the cathedral (5):
- Half-timbered houses on Rue Nicolas Pastour.
- Remains of ramparts, Rue Jean Racine.
- Small half-timbered house at the chevet of the cathedral: dating from 1410, it is the oldest house in Beauvais still standing today.
- Musée de l'Oise, housed in the former bishop's palace, rebuilt in Renaissance style in the early 16th century.
- Notre-Dame de la Basse Oeuvre Church. Built in the early 11th century in the early Romanesque style, it was replaced by the Gothic cathedral.

Saint-Pierre Cathedral (5):
Built in the Gothic style between the 13th and 15th centuries, it was never completed (no nave). Of note:
- The choir, impressive for its height: at 48.5 metres, it is the highest Gothic choir in the world.
- The stained glass windows in the choir.
- The astronomical clock.
Opening hours: November to March, 10:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.; April to October, 10:00 a.m. to 6:15 p.m.

From the cathedral (5) to the station (S/E):
- Remains of Saint Bartholomew's Collegiate Church.
- Saint-Étienne Church (12th-17th century) (6). Opening hours: 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
- Boileau Tower (15th century).
- Pleasant walk along the Thérain river.