To protect themselves against plundering troops, the citizens of Malmedy built a fortress wall with eight access gates in 1601. One of those is the Grétédar Gate – also known as the 'Gate of Livremont', which lies at the foot of Livremont Hill, one of the first routes via which the town could be entered, though it was difficult to surmount. The first hall on the Place Albert 1er having been destroyed in 1689, the Grétédar Gate was finally given a new function as a hall in 1727. Until 1794, it served as the headquarters of the supreme court, only to be given yet another new function as a town hall by the French. With a brief interruption until 1808, the municipality was to keep its headquarters in the Grétédar Hall. After that, the building was let, leased and privately used, before finally being sold in 1964 to the V.o.E. Malmedy-Folklore.
