Rue Weygand

The Beirut city hall on Weygand Street

Buildings along Weygand Street

Rue Weygand is a street in Beirut's Central Business District. Originally, the street was named Rue Nouvelle as it was a new thoroughfare constructed as part of a modernization plan in 1915.^[1] Upon its completion, the street was renamed after Maxime Weygand, the High Commissioner of French-mandated Syria and Lebanon who served from 19 April 1923 – 29 November 1924.

Jean Lauffray, the French archeologist, revealed that Rue Weygand followed the ancient Roman decumanus.^[2][3] While Roman and Byzantine mosaic floors have been found, the street predates the Roman Empire as archeological digs have also uncovered evidence that the street was a commercial hub even prior to the Hellenization of Phoenicia.^[4]

Prior to the war, the number 2 tram ran from Gare du Phare to Rue de Damas via Rue Weygand.^[5]

Rue Weygand is a one-way street that runs east-west, beginning at Boulevard George Haddad and turning into Rue Georges Picot that cuts through the Jewish quarter of Wadi Abu Jamil.^[6] The Municipality of Beirut is located on the street along with exclusive designer shops and hotels, such as Le Gray.^[7] The Beirut Souks are also located on Rue Weygand.

In Literature

• The Arms of the Mantis by Robert Charles

"Sam Terrell was at that moment prowling the rooftop of a high rise building on the Rue Weygand."

• The Man in the Middle by Hugh Atkinson

"Lawrence turned right into the Rue Weygand, changed down and accelerated past a crawl of Mercedes, Buicks and Cadillacs."

• Redemption: A Novel of War in Lebanon by Liston Pope

"Ligury turned left on Rue Weygand, approaching the center."

• The Song of the Goldencocks by Margaret Donnelly

"The taxi drove him around blocks and piles of collapsing buildings, then back to Rue Weygand, because Hamid wanted to show him a few archeological excavations that he pointed to, explaining, “Omari Grand Mosque, built over Roman temple..."

• The Tiller of Waters by Hoda Barakat

"I went out to Rue Maarad, thinking I would go as far as Rue Weygand and from there would go home to plant the shoots before they could wilt."

See also

• Solidere
• Beirut Central District

References