‘Little Holland’ square, a statue of Prince Henry the Navigator from Portugal, a tomb for a Duke of Brittany carved from Italian marble, an edict of tolerance which put an end to the Wars of Religion which divided Europe in the 16th century… there are many examples which demonstrate how Nantes’ connection to Europe is deeply rooted in its history. Above all, the city is a port. Nantes has been a place of arrival and departure for many and varied groups of people for centuries. It is also one of the Atlantic gateways to Europe, a Europe built on interaction and exchange between its populations.