Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Nicelhommière de la Rivière-aux-Chirets is a 17th-century historical monument located in Chauvigny on the ancient Roman road between Poitiers and Bourges. This seigneurial house is distinguished by its three-storey main building body (ground floor, floor, attic), framed by two round towers in the east with a vaulted room and a dovecote. The facades open onto closed courtyards bordered by communes, including stables to the north and a well to the south. A back wing, contemporary home, extends the whole, while an extension to the 19th century completes the buildings.

The interior, renovated in the 18th century, preserves remarkable elements such as a stone staircase with wrought iron ramp and a walled room with a Louis XVI fireplace. The east facade and the roofs of the main body, the foreyard with its towers, the entrance porch and the well, as well as the commons, have been protected since 1986 by an inscription to the Historical Monuments. The site, open to the public in the summer, bears witness to the aristocratic residential architecture of the region.

The location of the gentilhommière, on a major Roman axis, underlines its historical importance in the ancient communication network. The interior layouts of the 18th and 19th centuries illustrate the evolution of lifestyles and architectural taste, while preserving original structures. Today, the monument offers a representative example of the seigneurial residences of Poitou, marked by their integration into a rural landscape and their adaptation to the successive needs of their occupants.

External links