Tours and its historical centre

For us a convenient stopover on our way to Fouras when leaving in the evening.  Although we always stay over in a hotel not far from the highway, hence my first opportunity to visit the town was with my mother during our trip to the Loire last year.
A Gallic-Roman city of origin, it was called Caesarodunum (the hill of Ceasar).  You can still see some ruins from that era on the square below:

From the 4th century the pilgrims passing ensured the prosperity of the town.  Then the kings of France visited Tours often during the 15th & 16th-c.  King Louis XI made Tours the capital of France and established the first silk industry here, where the industry soon flourished, with 800 masters and 6000 craftsmen working in the trade.  During Henri IV's reign Paris became the capital of France. 
The town suffered considerable damage during the bombing by the Prussians in 1870 and during WWII.  By 1960 the middle class abandoned the historic centre which became a slum.  Thanks to the longest reigning mayor of Tours (1958-1996), Jean Royer, the city was regenerated and today you can enjoy the pedestrainized medieval heart of city with its half-timbered façades.

It was early - before the crowds arrive and we could have coffee in a pretty café.  The door had a beautiful decorative feature:

An old church nowadays serving as an Irish pub...: