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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Mynier Hotel, also known as the Francheville Hotel, is a private hotel located in Vannes, at the corner of Place des Lices and Place du Poit-Public. Built in tuffeau and granite, it originally dates from the 1st quarter of the 17th century, although later sources evoke a construction in the second half of the 17th century (ca. 1667-1677). His name comes from Julien Mynier, a 17th-century valve merchant, who acquired it in 1665 to build it partially on the site of a medieval house made of wood. The building preserves traces of this ancient period, such as a 15th-century fireplace and a dripper wall with an ogival bay.

The hotel is closely linked to Breton political history: it was built during the exile of the British Parliament in Vannes (1675-1689), reflecting the administrative importance of the city at that time. Its architecture combines facades with spans quadrilled by granite and limestone bands, skylights adorned with pediments, and a pentagonal scallop resting on trunks decorated with scallop shells. This scald, symbol of prestige, offers a view of the two adjacent places. The archives reveal that Julien Mynier began major works in 1667, including the demolition of the rear parts to enlarge the house to the north.

The hotel has been listed as a Historic Monument since 1929 for its scald and roof, then extended in 2016 to its facades and stairwell, and has suffered structural weaknesses since the 1920s. Consolidation work was carried out in the 1950s (concrete strap under the scauguette) and in 2013 (foundations and work), following a peril order in 2001. Recent restorations have revealed medieval elements, such as traces of primitive corbellation on the southern facade. The building changed several times from the families Le Meilleur (17th century) to Alquier de Mézerac (18th century), then to traders in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The archives also mention an aborted project to modernize the east façade in 1927 by architect Alfred Charron, partially realized. The last major intervention dates back to 1978, with a concrete consolidation of the chopstick. Today, the hotel bears witness to the architectural and social evolutions of Vannes, between medieval heritage, classical prestige, and contemporary adaptations.

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