Support for local authorities that have signed the City or Country of Art and History Convention

"Cities or Countries of Art and History" is a label awarded by the Ministry of Culture to communities that engage in an active policy of quality of heritage, architecture and living environment throughout their territory. The labelling entitles to the allocation of a grant when the project promoters request it for the development of a resource centre and for sharing information on the evolution of the territory, its history and its cultural riches, heritage and architectural.

Presentation of the device

What is the label "Ville ou Pays d'art et d'histoire"?

Created in 1985, the label "City or Country of Art and History" is awarded to territories that are committed to relying on their cultural, heritage and architectural resources to develop their territory.

The term heritage must be understood in its broadest sense, since it concerns both the whole of the built heritage as well as the natural, industrial, maritime and technical heritages as well as the memory of the inhabitants.

The Ministry of Culture accompanies the communities throughout their process of "City or Country of art and history". A convention, which can be renegotiated every ten years, is signed between the labelled territory and the State.

It commits the community to:

recruit an architecture and heritage facilitator in charge of the implementation of the convention
enhance heritage and promote architectural creation and quality
to develop a policy of the public: sensitization of the inhabitants and of all the professionals to their architectural and landscape environment, initiation of the young public to the architecture and the heritage, reception of the tourist public
to set up an Architecture and Heritage Interpretation Centre (CIAP) which didactically presents the architecture and heritage of the city or country. It is a real place to welcome visitors, resources and debate for the inhabitants and the actors of the territory.

Objectives of the approach

This label commits the communities to implement a active policy in terms of heritage development and architectural quality and has many advantages. It allows the labeled territories to gain visibility, to join the national network of Cities or Countries of Art and History and to benefit from the expertise of the Ministry of Culture in several areas, including:

the creation and architectural quality
conservation and restoration
cultural exhibitions and programs
written, human and digital mediation
arts and cultural education
the reception of people with disabilities
the publishing
the professionalization of the sector by opening the right of access to the training provided by the departments of the Ministry of Culture: a training "taking up the post" and an annual training seminar for animators of architecture and heritage.

Local authorities with which the State has signed an agreement "City or Country of art and history" may also benefit from a financial aid for:

the salary of an architecture and heritage facilitator
the scenography study of the Centre d'interprétation de l'architecture et du patrimoine (CIAP)
charted communication documents
pedagogical actions

Would you like to know more about the label Ville or Pays d'art et d'histoire? Go here:

En savoir plus sur le label

Am I concerned by this approach?

Qui peut déposer un dossier ?

Commons
Local public enterprises
EPCI with own taxation

Critères d'éligibilité du demandeur

Les local authorities having signed the convention "City or Country of art and history" may apply for a grant.

To guarantee the award of the grant, it is advisable to contact the decentralized departments of the Ministry of Culture in your region in order to verify that your application is compatible with the objectives of the label "City or Country of art and history".

Critères de non éligibilité du demandeur

Les communities not being labeled "City or Country of art and history" are not authorized to apply for a grant.

Associations are not eligible.

Nature des dépenses éligibles

Operating expenses may be subsidized.

Capital expenditure on the scenography of architectural and heritage interpretation centres may be subsidized by the Ministry of Culture.

Proceeding

Montant de la subvention

The amount of the subsidy is determined according to the convention "City or Country of art and history". The grant represents 50% of the total expenditure allocated to the project, where possible.

Namely:

Up to €100,000 for the scenography of architecture and heritage interpretation centres
50% of the gross salary of the animator of architecture and heritage for 2 years or the same amount spread over 3 years, up to a limit of €20,000

Modalités d'attribution de la subvention

The Facilitator’s Salary Grant is paid at one time on the basis of an annual application and employment account.

The grant for the construction of an interpretation centre for architecture and heritage, in the form of an investment, shall be paid on proof of expenditure.

Calendrier

File opening: January 2023.
Deadline for applications: 15 October 2023, 23:59 (Paris time) within the limits of available appropriations and prior validation of the project.
No file may be filed or considered after this date.

Comment déposer un dossier ?

To access the online form, click on the "Access form" button at the bottom of the page.
Log in or create an account, then let yourself be guided.

Examples of projects previously supported

Country of art and history of Moulins Communacy

On January 7, 2021 was signed the new convention of the label Pays d'art et d'histoire which now includes 44 municipalities. The territory of the Pays d'art et d'histoire extends to the perimeter of the agglomeration community of Moulins Communauté, with 65,000 inhabitants in a territory of 1,336 km². It combines three types of landscape: the Bocage in the west, the Sologne bourbonnaise in the east, connected by the Val d'Allier where flows one of the last wild rivers of Europe. The Pays d'art et d'histoire project is fully in line with the community’s strategy to open up the territory while making it more attractive.

Trojan

On March 3, 2022, the label "Ville d'art et d'histoire" was officially renewed in the city of Troyes for the 2022-2032 decade. 15 cities and countries of art and history are labeled in the Grand Est on a total of 206 in France.

Reims

The new agreement of the label "Ville et pays d'art et d'histoire" was signed on June 29, 2021, to confirm the place of Reims among the territories labeled on the Great East. The City of Reims has been a City of Art and History since 1987 and has two UNESCO-listed sites.

A question?

If you have any questions about supporting local authorities who have signed the City or Country of Art and History Convention, you are invited to contact the decentralized service of the Ministry of Culture in your region: