Carnegie Library

The Carnegie Library of Reims is one of three libraries built with Carnegie Foundation money in front-line cities after World War I. Designed by Louis Souquet and completed in 1928, it sits near the Cathedral in the heart of the historic city and remains an active public library. The building's restrained neoclassical facade — pilasters, a central portico, and clean stone-faced walls — is a fine example of the postwar reconstruction architecture that gave Reims much of its current look.

The library is worth a brief visit for its main reading room, which retains its original light-filled interior. It holds special collections relating to the history of Reims and Champagne. Check opening hours before visiting as it operates on library schedules rather than tourist ones.

things to do architecture sight
A story
Andrew Carnegie donated money to rebuild libraries in three cities that had been devastated by fighting on the Western Front: Reims, Leuven in Belgium, and Belgrade. The Reims library, completed in 1928, was designed in a neoclassical style that fits naturally with the city's postwar reconstruction, though Carnegie himself had died in 1919 and never saw it completed.

Other places in Things to Do