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Origin and history

The House Billaud is a mansion located in Fontenay-le-Comte, in the Vendée department, in the Pays de la Loire region. Built in the 16th century, it consists of two separate houses separated by a central courtyard, with a second courtyard overlooking Rue de la Harpe. The front facades, made of cut stone, contrast with the rear facades in stone, while the roofs are covered with tiles. This building illustrates the civil architecture of the Renaissance in Bas Poitou, with stylistic elements characteristic of this period, such as corbelled turrets and cradle vaults.

The house originally belonged to the Garipault family, one of Fontenay-le-Comte's influential Calvinist families. Catherine Regnaud, the alleged sponsor of the first house, donated it to her nephews, the Garipaults. The second house was probably built at the end of the 16th century or at the beginning of the 17th century, under the impulse of Bernard Garipault or his widow, Jeanne de Saint-Martin. The notarial sources mention detailed visits in 1678 and 1736, revealing an original facade adorned with a shop on the ground floor, crosses on the floors and turrets. In 1742, the street façade was rebuilt, marking a major transformation of the building.

Under the Ancien Régime, the residence was known by the picturesque names of the Courpe, the Artichoke or the Pine Apple, and was part of the fief of Guinefolle. In the 18th century, the property was divided before being reconstructed around 1940 by the town of Fontenay-le-Comte, which acquired the second house to gather it in the first. In 1939, an ambitious restoration project, including the destruction of the facade on the street to create a courtyard, was proposed by architect Émile Boutin, but never realized. Since 1983, the House Billaud has been protected as historical monuments, with elements classified (facades on courtyard, staircase, vaulted room) and inscribed (facades and roofs on street).

Although often associated with the name Billaud, this name is not based on any historical basis. Instead, the archives reveal owners such as the Garipault, a prominent Protestant family, of which François was a leader of Protestantism in Bas-Poitou. Architectural transformations, such as adding link galleries or changing vaulted spaces, reflect changes in lifestyles and residential needs between the 16th and 18th centuries. Today, Billaud House bears witness to this civil and religious heritage, marked by the denominational tensions of the Renaissance and the successive adaptations of the urban space.

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