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Origin and history

The Hotel de Noirmoutier, also known as Hotel de Sens, is an 18th-century mansion located at 138 rue de Grenelle, in the Faubourg Saint-Germain in Paris. Built between 1721 and 1724 by architect Jean Courtonne for Antoine François de La Trémoille, Duke of Noirmoutier, it is distinguished by its history linked to the aristocracy and its refined architecture. The Duke, though blind, personally supervised the plans, even choosing materials and fabrics by touch, a fact emphasized by Saint-Simon.

Originally, the land belonged to Claude Mollet, draftsman of the royal gardens, who built there a first hotel rented to the Count of Comminges in 1688. After successive sales, the land on Rue de Grenelle was acquired in 1720 by the Duke of Noirmoutier, who had the present hotel built there. The stones come from local quarries: Vaugirard for foundations, Arcueil for ground floor, and Saint-Leu for facades. The total cost, estimated at £30,439, was settled in 1722.

After the Duke's death in 1733, the hotel passed to his niece, the Marquise de Matignon, who sold it in 1734 to Mademoiselle de Sens. The latter enlarged the property and had the interiors renovated, giving the hotel its second name, Hotel de Sens. At his death in 1765 the Duke's nephew, the prince of Condé, inherited him. The hotel will then house foreign ambassadors, such as the Marquis de Castromonte (1768) or the Count of Fuentès (1770), before becoming a national good under the Revolution.

Confiscated in 1795, the hotel was sold to private individuals, including a wine merchant and a Ghent merchant, before being bought by the state in 1814. It will successively house the guards of the Earl of Artois, the School of State Enforcement Major (1825–77), then Marshal Foch from 1919 to 1929. In 1970, he became the residence of the prefect of Paris and Île-de-France. Ranked a historic monument in 1996, it preserves architectural elements of the 18th century, despite modifications such as the elevation of the wings in 1853.

The hotel illustrates the changes in the Faubourg Saint-Germain, which passed from a quarter of real estate speculation in the 17th century to a place of administrative power. Its history also reflects the French political upheavals, from the Ancien Régime to the Fifth Republic, through the Revolution and the two Empires. Today, it remains a symbol of Parisian heritage, mixing aristocratic heritage and public service.

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