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School of Medicine
Montpellier is world-renowned for its medical education. The city owes this reputation to its medical school, founded in 1220: the oldest medical school in the Western world still in existence.
Since 1795, the School of Medicine has been housed in one of Montpellier’s most beautiful buildings: the former episcopal palace, which was once the Saint Benoit-Saint Germain monastery. It is a place steeped in history, which hundreds of students now bring to life in the present day…
This building is an architectural treasure in its own right, with its monumental lobby, ceremonial halls, main courtyard, and anatomy amphitheater. The complex was designated a Historic Monument in 2004.
School of Law
The Faculty of Law and Political Science has been housed in the former Visitation Convent since 1959. Built in 1631 during the reign of Louis XIII, this building is part of the rich architectural heritage of Montpellier’s historic center. It is the only building in the city, along with the Ursuline Convent, to have fully preserved its cloister and chapel. These remnants of its original ecclesiastical purpose bear witness today to the intense religious activity that took place around Saint-Pierre Cathedral from the late Middle Ages through the 18th century.
Once past the vast “Aula Placentinea”—the large hall you encounter when entering the faculty through the main entrance—you immediately reach the 17th-century cloister. With its ribbed vaulting, it presents a simple, unadorned yet elegant ensemble.
The library of legal history houses rare and valuable ancient volumes, most of which are devoted to Roman legal scholarship, a field in which the faculty was one of the jewels of the medieval era.
Triolet Campus
In 1964, the Faculty of Sciences in Montpellier moved from the buildings it occupied on Rue de l’Université (on the site of the current university administration building) to the new university campus on Place Eugène Bataillon. This construction was part of the Fifth Republic’s commitment to advancing research and providing higher education institutions with modern facilities capable of accommodating a growing number of students.
The Ministry of Education selected technical advisor René Egger for its construction program. His firm drew up standard plans for French science universities but left it to local architects to adapt them.
In Montpellier, architect Philippe Jaulmes chose an open, wooded site with buildings designed to make the most of the Mediterranean light. He also commissioned works under the 1% Art Program* from young artists who are now world-renowned, including Pierre Parsus, François Rouan, Victor Vasarely and his son Yvaral, Albert Dupin, and Yaacov Agam. Construction was completed in 1967.
* Introduced in 1951, this legal provision mandates the creation of works by contemporary visual artists in conjunction with public architectural projects. Since its implementation, the 1% Art Program has funded approximately 12,300 works.
Botanical Institute
Located in the heart of Montpellier, the Botanical Institute is the custodian of the city’s botanical garden, the oldest in France. Charles Flahault, a renowned botanist and director of the institute, oversaw the construction of the buildings beginning in 1889. The facilities were inaugurated in April 1890 and visited in May by Sadi Carnot, President of the French Republic, during the university’s 600th anniversary celebrations. After 50 years of operation, the building was renovated and expanded; the new buildings were inaugurated in 1959.
In particular, the Botanical Institute enabled Charles Flahault to bring all of Montpellier’s herbariums together under one roof. Today, it houses a treasure within its venerable walls: the prestigious Montpellier herbarium, the second-largest herbarium in France after that of the National Museum of Natural History in terms of the volume and quality of its collections. Serving as both a research tool and a cultural heritage resource, the Montpellier herbarium contains approximately 3.5 million plant specimens.
Sète Marine Biology Station
By the end of the 19th century, the coastline around Sète was regarded as a zoological area of exceptional richness. To streamline the weekly zoological excursions and facilitate research, Armand Sabatier, a professor of zoology, decided to establish a marine biology station there.
As early as 1879, the city of Sète provided him with modest premises. Shortly thereafter, he was granted a plot of land on the shore of the Thau Lagoon for the construction of the zoological station. Inaugurated in 1896, it included all the facilities necessary for research and teaching.
With its extensive collections housed in a zoological museum—including numerous ichthyological (fish-related) and conchyliological (shellfish-related) specimens—the Sète Marine Biology Station has gained international recognition and renown. After a century of operation and major building renovations, it remains an active center for scientific research.
