Nestling in peaceful countryside, Doullens was formerly located on the borders of the kingdom of France and the Spanish Netherlands, which explains the successive destruction of the original belfry dating from 1275.
The present belfry, built at the beginning of the 17th century, was the headquarters of the aldermen’s council (present Town Council). Cardinal Richelieu, then Louis XIV and his son paid tribute to the belfry, which was a watch tower, guardian of the community bell, prison and chapel at the same time.
Its façade, made of brick and stone with “bosses”, has a porte cochère on the ground floor and three doors on the steps, including the Grand Gate in the centre. Upstairs, six windows lit the Provost’s Chamber and the Chamber of the Town, walled up since the Revolution.
A tower in the same style as the façade surmounts the building, symbolising the community’s freedom. It is, in a way, the civilian church tower !
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