Corderie royale

The Corderie Royale - International Center of the Sea, is a vast museum complex located in the heart of the Rochefort Maritime Arsenal. The building, built in 1666, has been listed as a historical monument since 1967 and is currently a candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List1.
Construction began in February 1666 according to architect François Blondel's and was completed in June 1669. For nearly two hundred years, the building was used to make ropes for the royal navy.
Indeed, its length (374m) made it possible to carry out ropes of a cable (195m) in one piece. The main wing is bordered by 2 pavilions. In the north, that intended for the storage of hemp and in the south, that intended for the tarring of the rope.
The ropes are then sent to the refit north of the Arsenal.
The production of ropes was interrupted in 1862. La Corderie was reconverted and housed several institutions: 'annex of the naval artillery, maritime works, the secret archives of the navy, the museum of "small-models", the school de maistrance and apprentice gunsmiths. To do this, the building is rearranged, modified, cut in half to allow a railway line to pass.
In 1926, the Arsenal being closed, the Corderie was gradually abandoned. The decline is complete after a fire at the Corderie Royale in 1944 following a German air raid.
In 1964, Rear Admiral Maurice Dupont undertook a major project to rehabilitate the Corderie. After clearing the brush, he sets up games for children, bowling green and landscaping lawns.
At the same time, the municipality is undertaking the process of classifying the building as a historical monument and it is in this that the building is classified as a Historical Monument.
In 1973, the Corderie Royale site was purchased from the State by the city of Rochefort. The rehabilitation work will last twelve years: until 1984. Then the last additional work will end in 1988 with the reconstruction of the guardhouse.
The building, whose restoration work has enabled the city to benefit from the "National Heritage Grand Prize, now houses administrative and tertiary services for the Sea.
leuromag.fr/la-corderie-royale-de-rochefort_a6336.html
francetvinfo.fr/culture/patrimoine/rochefort-revivez-l-histoire-de-la-corderie-royale_3845435.html

Beautiful building, with lovely walks