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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Hôtel de Guidais is a mansion built in the second half of the 18th century in Montpellier, on land acquired by the architect Isaac Guidais from the preaching brothers. Its construction, which began in 1754, was almost interrupted in order to give way to the alleys of Peyrou, but the intervention of the bishop of Nîmes, then Treasurer of the Languedoc States, allowed its safeguard. This monument, marked by a double facade (hexagonal courtyard and garden), embodies the elegance of Montpellieran "insanities", with basket handle openings and carved mascarons.

Ferdinand de Hompesch, Grand Master of the Order of Malta, lived there from 1802 until his death in 1805, attracted by the fame of the Faculty of Medicine of Montpellier. The hotel then served as headquarters for the Military Division during the Restoration and the beginning of the Second Empire. Between 1977 and 1980, a major restoration, led by the owner Jean Molinier under the supervision of the Monuments de France, restored to the building and its park their original splendor, including allegorical gypseries and a water buffet decorated with maritime sculptures.

Interior architecture is distinguished by a wrought iron staircase without a central pillar, a small octagonal living room, and a large living room decorated with gypseries representing the four elements, the arts, and fables of La Fontaine. The fireplace of the dining room, with its mercury mirror murmur, bears witness to the refinement of the period. Outside, the garden combines classical symmetry and romanticism, with centuries-old micocolars, waterfall fountains, and rare plant species such as Corsican boxwood.

Ranked a historic monument in 1977, the hotel in Guidais owes its protection to its facades, roofs, interior decorations (gypseries, staircase ramp), and its garden structured around a fountain terrace and a central basin. Orangery, outbuildings, and the entrance gate complete this ensemble, illustrating the art of living of Montpellier elites in the Enlightenment century. The protected elements also include the Hexagonal Honor Court and the two fountains on the terrace, symbols of the dialogue between architecture and nature.

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