Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The castle of Abondant, built in the 17th century in the style of Louis XIII, is located in the commune of Abondant, in Eure-et-Loir. It is representative of the aristocratic architecture of this period, with major transformations in the 18th century, especially under the impulse of the family of Sourches Butcher, which made it an emblematic residence of the refined taste of the period.

The origins of the estate date back at least to the 15th century, with lords like Pierre de Bigot or Guillaume de La Guiry. At the beginning of the 17th century, Joachim de Bellangreville, Grand provost of France, acquired the seigneury. His widow, Marie de La Noue, exchanged the estate in 1645 with Jacques Bouchet de Sourches, Abbé de Saint-Martin de Trouart. It is under this family that the present castle is built, marking the beginning of a long period of possession and beautification.

In the middle of the 18th century, Louis II du Bouchet de Sourches, Grand Prévôt de France and lieutenant general, modernized the castle between 1747 and 1750. He called on the architect Jean Mansart de Jouy, grandson of Jules Hardouin-Mansart, to enlarge the house body, create an honor staircase with a iron ramp, and build a large living room with woodwork decorated with Chinese motifs, called "pekin's salon". This lounge, decorated by Parisian artisans such as Jacques de Sève and the carpenter Michel Cresson, reflects the craze for exoticism and the Rocaille assagi style.

The castle remained in the Bouchet de Sourches family until the 19th century, then passed to the Pérusus des Cars by alliance. In the 20th century, he changed hands several times: bought in 1920 by American banker Henry Herman Harjes, then by Pannonica de Koenigswarter during the Second World War. In 1951, it was transformed into a medical and social centre, welcoming elderly people and refugees. Since 2016, after a period of abandonment, it has been restored and converted into 54 rental units.

In spite of its inclusion in the additional inventory of historical monuments in 1928, the castle park was partially loti since the 1960s, reducing its historical estate. Today, the castle preserves remarkable elements such as its wrought iron entrance gate, classified as a historical monument, and its 18th century staircase of honour, testimony to its prestigious past.

The interior decorations, especially those of the "pekin's salon", were dismantled in 1902 and transferred to Paris before being finally acquired by the Louvre Museum in 1988. This salon, reconstituted in its entirety, is now exhibited at the Louvre, illustrating the French decorative art of the mid-18th century and the fascist of the aristocratic residences of the time.

External links