The parliaments were formally abolished by law in 1790, and by 1791, the new judicial system was in place and the Parlement de Bretagne had ceased to exist.
The Parliament Today
The Parliament building has survived two major disasters in the city of Rennes. On December 22nd, 1720, a fire started in a building on the modern day Rue de l’Horloge (Clock Street, right next to my apartment!) burning over five days and destroying 800 buildings around Rennes. The Parliament, made mostly of stone, was spared during this fire. Unfortunately, another fire broke out in Rennes more than two centuries later when, following large protests by fishermen throughout the city, on February 4th, 1994, the roof caught fire. The fire ravaged into the early morning as a crowd of Rennais stood silently before the scene in awe. The entire ceiling was destroyed, but fortunately, court transcripts and other documents had mostly been spared.
Many rooms required reconstruction. Renovations were underway quickly following the fire. In some respects the fire brought to life a building deeply respected in Brittany but otherwise not widely known in France to the limelight. In 1999, the Parliament opened to the public, making it one of the few buildings in France where tours are held in the same place that court cases still take place. Today, the Parliament is home to the Cours d’Appels (Court of Appeals) which, while far from resembling its form during the Ancien Régime, still functions as a court today.
And to think that I bike by its majestic doors every day!
