Place Stanislas in Nancy is the work of a king without a kingdom. Stanislas Leszczyński, twice king of Poland and father-in-law of Louis XV, was given the Duchy of Lorraine in 1737 as a consolation prize, and he spent the rest of his life rebuilding its capital. The great square that bears his name, laid out in the 1750s by the architect Emmanuel Héré, links the old medieval town with the newer quarter, and it is one of the most harmonious public spaces in Europe. Pale stone buildings with curved corners stand around a wide cobbled space, and a statue of the duke stands in the middle.
The glory of the square is its ironwork. Gilded wrought iron gates and railings, made by the master smith Jean Lamour, enclose the fountains in the corners and gleam in the sun, with elaborate scrolls and flowers and tiny details that reward close inspection. The town hall, the opera and the fine arts museum surround the square, and an arch at one end leads on to the Place de la Carrière, a tree-lined promenade that leads to the ducal palace. UNESCO listed the three squares in 1983.
Nancy is also a centre of Art Nouveau, as the Nancy School, led by glassmaker Émile Gallé, became a force in the decorative arts around 1900. The city is full of curving balconies, floral windows and ironwork, and a museum devoted to the school is housed in a villa on the edge of town. In the evenings the square is lit and cafés spill out onto the terraces.
Practically, Nancy is a city of over a hundred thousand, so fuel, supermarkets and parking for motorcycles are all easy, though the centre is largely pedestrian and the underground car parks are the best option. Malzéville, on the hill across the canal, has quieter streets. Lorraine's food is distinct: quiche lorraine, macarons, the sweet bergamot candies of Nancy, and spirits made of the golden mirabelle plum.
The roads of Lorraine offer fine riding. To the south-east, the Vosges mountains begin, with wooded hills, lakes and passes, while to the west the rolling plain of the Meuse gives quiet country roads. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, since winters are cold and damp.