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Amiens website: access and history
The former convent of the Visitandines houses the Amiens site of the Direction régionale des affaires culturelles des Hauts-de-France. It is located at 5 Rue Henri Daussy in Amiens.
Access
5 rue Henri-Daussy CS 44407, 80044 AMIENS CEDEX 1
An access plan for people with reduced mobility is available for download:
History of the Visitation Convent
The Amiens de la DRAC site is located in the Henriville district, in the former convent of the Visitandines, an order of women created by Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Jeanne de Chantal in the 1610s. This monastery, founded on September 14, 1640, was occupied by the nuns until the Revolution. They were then driven out.
In 1803, the nuns returned and the new convent of the Visitation Sainte Marie (currently occupied by the Amiens site of the DRAC) was built, from 1839 to 1841. The congregation was abolished in 1904, the sisters again exiled and the buildings bought by a limited real estate company. The major seminary then moved into the former convent until its abolition in 1962.
In the early 1970s, the premises escaped destruction thanks to the intervention of the prefect. The buildings were purchased by the state, and the gardens became the property of the city.
The restoration of the buildings begun in 1975 was completed in 1987.
