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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Chavagnac hotel is a mansion located in Moulins (Allier), built in the seventeenth century and redesigned in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is distinguished by its classic ordinance between courtyard and garden, accessible by a monumental 17th century gate flanked by pavilions. The rue de Paris, where it is located, concentrated religious buildings and aristocratic hotels, such as those of the Jesuits or the Visitation.

In the 19th century, the Chavagnac family, originally from Auvergne but settled in Bourbonnais by alliance, acquired the hotel and began its restoration under the Second Empire. The salons retain a decor characteristic of this period, mixing rock style and neoclassical elements. The gate, classified as a historical monument in 1987 with the communes and the house, bears the coat of arms of Chavagnac combined with those of Devaulx de Chambord.

The building illustrates the architectural evolution of millenian private hotels, from 17th century classicism to the fascists of the Second Empire. Its garden, with a factory (small temple of pleasure), and its underground passage linking courtyard and garden testify to the influence of Parisian models. The interior decorations, such as the woodwork, stucco and wallpapers of the large living room, make it a rare local example of Napoleonic style.

The 1987 protection covers the vermiculated doorway, the wings of the communes, the garden pavilion and the house body with its staircase, vestibule and living rooms. The hotel is part of an urban complex marked by the religious and nobility history of Moulins, between courthouse (former Jesuit college) and Banville High School (former Visitation convent).

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