Petite France in Strasbourg: Barrage Vauban, Ponts Couverts, Old Town
The Petite France is a historic quarter of Strasbourg. It is located at the western end of the Grande Île, which contains the historical centre of the city. Just upstream of Petite France, the River Ill flows through the Barrage Vauban, a defensive structure built at the end of the 17th century. Downstream of this, the river splits into the Canal du Faux-Rempart and four channels which flow through the Petite France quarter. These four channels are spanned by the Ponts Couverts, an earlier defensive structure of three bridges and four towers that, despite its name, has not been covered since the 18th century.