Louhans

Louhans was a fortified market town in Burgundian Bresse, close to a frontier that changed hands between France and the rulers of the neighbouring county of Burgundy. Its long main street was lined with arcades, sheltering the shops of traders and craftspeople beneath the houses. The fifteenth-century façades reflected the town's commercial life as well as its medieval layout.

In 1591, during the Wars of Religion, forces of the Catholic League took and dismantled Louhans, which had remained loyal to the French king. The following century brought further danger to the frontier. A decade of fighting during the Thirty Years' War devastated nearby fortified settlements, although Louhans itself escaped investment. The frontier moved farther away after the French conquest of Franche-Comté.