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Origin and history

The house of the Bailiwick, also called Malmaison, was in the Middle Ages the residence of the baili of Amiens, representative of the royal authority. His name would come from the Latin mallum publicum, designating a place of judicial assembly in the Carolingian era. The Bailiwick of Amiens, created in 1193 by Philippe Auguste, was one of the oldest and most important in the kingdom, symbolizing the centralized judiciary.

The current building was built in 1541 and expanded in 1573, sheltering royal justice until the French Revolution. In the Renaissance style, its stone façade features sling windows and medallions carved by Matthieu Laigniel, mixing Gothic influences and Renaissance ornaments. These sculptures depict feminine and masculine busts surrounded by leaf and fruit crowns, illustrating the art of the time.

Destroyed during the German bombings of 19 May 1940, only the facade was preserved. It was incorporated after 1945 into a new building and classified as a historic monument as early as 1941. Today, the building houses the finance department of the city of Amiens, while retaining this architectural testimony of the judicial past of the city.

The Malmaison is part of a set of protected Amienese monuments, reflecting the historic importance of the city as an administrative and judicial centre since the Middle Ages. Its architecture and history make it a symbol of the transition between medieval and modern times in the Hauts-de-France region.

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