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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The hotel of the Loches Savings Bank, built between 1907 and 1909 by architect Eugène Bruneau, embodies the urban and economic development of the city at the beginning of the 20th century. Its style combines neo-Renaissance and neo-Gothic influences, with facades adorned with allegories, maxims engraved on marble, and heraldic elements reminiscent of the tastes of the local bourgeoisie. Originally designed to house both the Savings Bank and the Post Office, this hybrid project was never fully realized.

Inaugurated on August 15, 1910 in the presence of War Minister Jean Brun, the building marks a time when financial institutions sought to combat poverty through economic education. Its two wings, arranged in right angle to the streets of the Games and Alfred-de-Vigny, are connected by a panel-cut facade, while the pavilion roofs and the false windows evoke a reinterpreted medieval heritage. The inscriptions on the marble tables underline the moral vocation of saving, reflecting the social ideals of the time.

After the departure of the Savings Bank in 1993, the building became a departmental business centre before being acquired in 2020 by the company History and Heritage for rehabilitation in 14 housing units. The facades, roofs and stairs, protected since 2000 as historical monuments, will be preserved, as will the original coverings. The project, planned for 2026, integrates parking lots in the inner courtyard, combining heritage conservation and contemporary adaptation.

The hotel's architecture, with its full-cinetrine geminous bays and quadripetal roses, illustrates a desire for harmony with the urban landscape of Loches, a city marked by its medieval history. The city's weapons and sculpted decorations testify to a dialogue between financial modernity and local tradition, characteristic of bourgeois achievements of the early twentieth century in Touraine. The building, now being rehabilitated, remains a symbol of the transition between times and uses.

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