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Origin and history

Hotel Maillard is a Renaissance mansion located in Baugé-en-Anjou, in the department of Maine-et-Loire. Built in the 16th century, it illustrates the transition between medieval and Italian styles, with a ramp staircase with two rotating quarters, typical of the period 1550. Its architecture combines a main house body, outbuildings below, and an Italian loggia open on an inner courtyard.

The stairway, the central element of the monument, spans the Altrée River and unites several pre-existing buildings. It incorporates steps of recovery of a medieval staircase, suggesting an origin related to the reconstruction of Baugé Castle by King René in the 15th century. The construction campaign around 1550 reoriented the whole towards Rue Basse, then became the main road, and gave the building its definitive form of Italian palace.

The name Maillard comes from an armored stone dated 1636, probably related to the purchase or restoration of the building by this family. Interior modernizations took place in the 18th century, including on chimneys and openings. Abandoned until the end of the 20th century, the hotel was saved after its classification in 1995, thanks to the work carried out by the architects Christophe Boucher and Gérôme Bodin, then completed under the direction of Philippe Méaille.

The building is distinguished by its five bodies of enfilade buildings, a half tower of latrines, and an asymmetrical loggia gallery. At the back, a small, arched hors-oeuvre body on three levels testifies to a variety of constructive techniques. The facade on the street, redesigned in the 18th century, partially masks this architectural complexity, while the courtyard reveals the Renaissance organization of the house, with its living rooms, its sculpted solitaire office, and its vaulted cabinet with cross-dogives.

Listed as a Historic Monument in 1995, the Maillard Hotel embodies the evolution of private hotels in the Loire Valley, mixing medieval heritage, Italian influences, and subsequent adaptations. Its staircase, both bridge and distribution element, remains a rare example of architectural ingenuity of the French Renaissance.

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