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Origin and history

This 15th century house was part of a collection of medieval houses located at the foot of the Place du Château de Blois. Characterized by a facade of wood panels painted from the first floor, it was backed by the walls of the fortress. These houses, typical of the 15th and 16th centuries, almost all disappeared during the bombings of 1940, which reduced them to ashes. Only this house was partially rebuilt in 1950, thus preserving an architectural testimony of that time.

The initial construction of this house dates back to the 4th quarter of the 16th century, after 1590, on the site of a house destroyed during the Wars of Religion for security reasons related to Blois Castle. This late rebuilding explains some stylistic elements after its original period. The street façade and roof, characteristic of wood-paned architecture, were protected by a registration order under the Historic Monuments on November 25, 1946, thereby recognizing its heritage value.

Today, the house is located at 25 rue des Violettes, in the historic centre of Blois. Its present state is the result of both the destructions of 1940 and the reconstructions carried out a decade later. Although modified, it retains traces of its medieval past and its close link with the city's urban and military history, notably through its adoration to the castle walls. The painted panels of wood and the filling of its facade make it a remarkable example of the Renaissance civil habitat in the Loire Valley.

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