Familistère de Guise

The Familistère de Guise, in the Aisne, is the "social palace" that the industrialist Jean-Baptiste André Godin, a maker of cast-iron stoves, had built for his workers from 1859 to 1884, near his factory. This utopian project, inspired by Fourier's thought, was to offer about 2,000 inhabitants great comfort and collective services. It operated until 1968 as a cooperative association of capital and labour. The site is listed as a historic monument.

The main building, the Social Palace, brings together three residential pavilions around an inner courtyard covered by a glass roof. The visit, free or guided, often begins with a large interactive model, then leads to the show apartments, the cooperative stores, the theatre, the schools, the laundry-pool and the gardens. The ensemble, still partly inhabited, includes about 5,000 m² of exhibitions and several hectares of gardens. A restaurant is set on site, Place du Familistère.

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