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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The hotel of Fizes, located at 6 rue du Puits-du-Temple in Montpellier's ECUson, is an emblematic mansion of the 17th and 18th centuries. Built around 1640 for David de Fizes, treasurer of the Court of Accounts, Aids and Finance, it embodies Montpellier's aristocratic architecture. Its monumental portal, dated 1665, blends Louis XIV elements (tore leafed) with manerist influences (mask and cut leather), evoking Renaissance models such as the Lescot wing of the Louvre. The courtyard houses a stairway in loggia, among the first of the city to have a wrought iron ramp, symbol of modernity for the era.

The hotel was the result of several works: renovations began in 1643 under the direction of Simon Levesville for David de Fizes, followed by a major overhaul in 1661 by Masse Sebron for his son, Pierre Fizes. This second phase defines the current organisation, with its passage, courtyard and large staircase with four nuclei. In 1718, alterations to the façade were authorized by a road permit. The gate, its vantals, the balconies of the windows on street and the stairway with its ramp are listed as historic monuments on October 18, 1944, recognizing their heritage value.

The building also illustrates the evolution of architectural styles: its summital decoration, representing two back-to-back captives, recalls the bas-reliefs of the Renaissance or the works of Michelangelo, while the overall structure reflects the classic cannons of the Great Century. Today, the Hotel de Fizes remains a major testimony of Montpellier's urban and social history, linked to the rise of the dress bourgeoisie under the Old Regime.

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