Gare de Metz-Ville — Metz, France
Posted by: 
prussel
N 49° 06.587 E 006° 10.635
32U E 294002 N 5443497
The Gare de Metz-Ville is the main railway station serving the city of Metz, capital of Lorraine, France
Waymark Code: WMQ49K
Location: Grand-Est, France
Date Posted: 12/17/2015
Views: 12
The Gare de Metz-Ville is the main railway station serving the city of Metz, capital of Lorraine, France, today connected to the French TGV high speed train network.
The station in Metz was a central point of plans for a new urban area in Metz, which was built during the first annexation of Metz by Otto von Bismarck into the German Empire. In order to "germanify" the city, Kaiser Wilhelm II decided upon the creation of a new district shaped by a distinctive blend of Germanic architecture. The district was conceived by German architect Conrad Wahn and is now commonly called the Imperial District.
The railway station is a 350-metre-long neo-Romanesque building built between 1905 and 1908 by German architect Jürgen Kröger, assisted by the architects Jürgensen and Bachmann, as well as by the sculptor Schirmer. It was built in the pale grey stoneware of Niderviller, in marked contrast to the other buildings of the city, which are mainly built in yellow limestone. The station building is architecturally reminiscent of the shape of a church in the departure hall area, with a clock tower rising 40m in height (said to be designed by Kaiser Wilhelm himself), on the other hand, the arrivals hall and restaurant echo the form of an imperial palace. Due to strategic needs the platforms are large enough to accommodate troops on foot and on horseback, the Metz railway station was directly linked to Berlin via the Cannons Railway.
Metz station has been registered as a Historic Monument since 15 January 1975. This designation gives legal protection to the station's façade, the roof, the departure hall, the honorary lounge, and the former station restaurant with its interior decorations.
source: wikipedia