100m higher than Old Lyon, the hill is named after the Forum vestus, in the Roman colony, some of whose ruins survive. The forum occupied the site of the old esplanade of the basilica until its probable collapse in 840. The hill was abandoned as of the 3C then replantd with crops in the Middle Ages, it was used again in the 17C by religious orders (hence the nickname, given by Michelet: the Praying Hill). You get to the top of the hill by taking the "montées", winding staircases or dizzyingly steep streets.