Lille in 1913, between the stock exchange, textiles, and coal

What you can expect:

• Visit the Old Town of Lille and immerse yourself in 1913, during the Belle Époque and on the eve of the Great War.
• Discover the major transformations that took place in the city during its second golden age, guided by a member of the bourgeoisie from that era.
• Enjoy the company of a passionate tour guide who embodies the character for a truly immersive tour of Lille.

Program

Lille, 1913. Jean-Baptiste Charles de Joguet is 33 years old and finally preparing to marry a young woman from the northern bourgeoisie, like himself. For the event, he decides to invite some of his friends from his student days in Paris.
With deep pride in his hometown, Jean-Baptiste takes them on a tour of Lille, where tradition meets modernity. From the elegant buildings of the stock exchange where he works to the affluent neighborhood that reflects his family's wealth, he takes them on a journey through the city's new golden age, the ‘Belle Époque’, a period of great change that would completely transform the city into what it is today.

Get to Know Your Guide/Character:

Jean-Baptiste Charles de Joguet was born on April 7, 1880, in Lille into high society. Coming from an old, wealthy family from the city, Jean-Baptiste received an education befitting his social status.
He did his military service from 1900 to 1902 in the 243rd Infantry Regiment, stationed in Lille itself. At the age of 21, he joined his father’s business on the stock exchange. He then led the classic, traditional life of a young bourgeois from Lille at that time. He sold locally produced textiles (linen and cotton) but also, and above all, coal.
In 1913, he was about to marry Émilienne Brame, the daughter of a textile industrialist from Armentières, who was 10 years his junior. Little did Jean-Baptiste know that he was living his final moments of peacetime. A year later, he would find himself in the trenches.