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Origin and history

The hotel of Amboise is a mansion built at the beginning of the 16th century on the promontory of Blois Castle, in the Loir-et-Cher. He was commissioned by Cardinal Georges d'Amboise, then principal minister of Louis XII, and served as a residence close to the Royal Court in Blois. Originally, it formed only one building with the Épernon Hotel until their separation around 1573. The facade, adorned with Gothic accolades and family shield, reflects its original prestige.

The hotel underwent major restorations between 1890 and 1938, led by architect Arsène Lafargue, before being registered for historical monuments in 1938. In June 1940, he was energized to protect the castle from the fires caused by the German bombings, reducing the building to ruins. After the Liberation, an identical reconstruction was undertaken, although some architectural details were simplified. This unique case in Blois was designed to restore its volumetric and original materials, with a slight shift of the façade to extend access to the Small degrees of the Castle.

The protected elements include the gable on the Place du Château, with its accolade windows and the Amboise shield, as well as a Gothic bay in the courtyard, topped by a gabled skylight. The post-1945 reconstruction relied on archival documents to regain its 16th century appearance, despite the absence of precise traces of the responsible architect. Today, the hotel bears witness to both the French Renaissance and the efforts to preserve the heritage after the Second World War.

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