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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Armenian college, located in Sèvres, is a rectangular house built in the second half of the eighteenth century, typical of the pleasure houses on the banks of the Seine. Originally, this building was donated to the Marquise of Pompadour to establish a school for girls. It was then rebuilt between 1816 and 1824 for General Bacler d'Albe, as attested by the cadastral archives and his date of death.

In the 19th century, the house was raised from one floor and turned into a girls' school. In 1898 it became a house of convalescence for colonial soldiers, run by the French Green Cross, until World War I. This place welcomed soldiers returning from colonial expeditions, marking a period of health and social use.

In 1928, the Armenian college Samuel Moorat settled, giving the building its current vocation. The building retains remarkable decorative elements, including a mural on the first floor representing major figures in Armenian religious and artistic history. This fresco, along with the facades, roofs, vestibule and large staircase, have been protected since 2003.

Ranked a historical monument, the Armenian college illustrates the architectural and functional evolution of a bourgeois residence, from leisure residence to educational institution. Its history also reflects the social and cultural changes of Sèvres, from the Enlightenment to the contemporary era.

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