Construction of hotel XVIIe siècle (≈ 1750)
Period of construction of the Marquis hotel.
août 1944
Destruction of the hotel
Destruction of the hotel août 1944 (≈ 1944)
Bombardments destroying the hotel, sparing the door.
12 juillet 1945
Registration for historical monuments
Registration for historical monuments 12 juillet 1945 (≈ 1945)
Official protection of the door as a vestige.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Door: entry by order of 12 July 1945
Key figures
Marquis de la Place - Hotel owner
Suspected sponsor of the original building.
Origin and history
The Porte de Pont-Saint-Esprit is an architectural vestige of the seventeenth century, located in the municipality of the same name, in the Occitanie region. It was the entrance to a private hotel, that of the Marquis de la Place, a building that has now disappeared. This monument, though modest by its size, bears witness to the civil heritage of the classical period in the south of France. Its style, marked by Tuscan pilasters and a curvilinear pediment, reflects the architectural influences of the era, mixing sobriety and characteristic ornaments.
The Marquis de la Place hotel was destroyed in August 1944 during the bombings that struck Pont-Saint-Esprit during the Second World War. Only this door remained, preserved despite the damage suffered by the rest of the building. It was officially listed as historic monuments by order of 12 July 1945, thereby recognizing its heritage value. The opening in full hang, framed with bosses and surmounted by an adorned pediment, as well as the key decorated with a feminine head, make it a remarkable example of the civil architecture of the Great Century.
Today, this vestige stands as a silent testimony of local history, recalling both the past grandeur of the mansion and the upheavals of the twentieth century. Its location, at 11 rue de l'Ancienne-Prison or close to rue des Minimes, according to the sources, makes it a point of interest for those passionate about history and architecture. Although the information on his visit or access is not specified, his inscription in the heritage protects this fragment of a past forever gone.
