Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Château Le Clos Bourbon, located in Saint-Laurent-d'Agny in the Rhone, is an estate whose exact origin remains unknown. It was entirely rebuilt in the 18th century, with an end to the works attested in 1739. This monument illustrates the aristocratic residential architecture of the period, combining a main house body, a chapel, a dovecote, and outbuildings organized around an east-west axis. The gardens, designed in 1741 by the architect Jacques-Germain Soufflot, constitute a remarkable part of the estate, structured to visually extend the eastern facade of the castle.

The estate retained its overall integrity despite some minor interior modifications in the 19th century. It consists, in addition to the castle, of an orangery, commons, and a farm, reflecting a typical organization of the large rural estates of the Ancien Régime. The facades, roofs, chapels and front gardens of the castle were protected by an inscription to the Historic Monuments in 1988, highlighting their heritage value. The historic address, Saint Vincent Road, and current GPS coordinates confirm its anchoring in the landscape of Saint-Laurent-d'Agny.

The intervention of Soufflot, then a young architect before his fame with the Pantheon of Paris, marks a key step in the history of the Clos Bourbon. The gardens, designed two years after the completion of the castle, are part of the 18th century landscape movement, combining classical aesthetics and functionality. The estate, although partially open to contemporary uses (visits, rentals), remains an intact testimony of the art of living of the provincial elites under Louis XV.

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