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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The prefecture hotel of Pas-de-Calais, located in Place de la Prefecture in Arras, originates in an episcopal palace built in 1770 by the Bishop of Conzié, then Bishop of Arras. The latter, freshly sacred in 1769, welcomed the deputies of the states of Artois during their sessions. The building, adjacent to Notre-Dame-en-Cité Cathedral (destroyed during the Revolution), served as an episcopal residence until its transformation into a prefecture in 1800 under the Consulate.

In 1836, a fire ravaged the building, leaving intact only the 18th century sandstone bases. The reconstruction, completed in 1856, scrupulously respects the original aspect. The sculptor Louis-Victor Bougron contributes to the ornaments of the portal. The park, divided into an honorary courtyard and a French garden with a wood preserved since the eighteenth century, completes the whole. The church of Saint-Nicolas-en-Cité, built between 1839 and 1846, replaces the old cathedral on the adjacent square.

Partially classified as historical monuments in 1995, the site protects its facades, roofs prior to 1850, and the entire park (excluding the old vegetable garden). A departmental property, it symbolizes both the religious heritage of the Old Regime and the modern administration. The remains of the episcopal palace, although limited, bear witness to its central role in local history, between ecclesiastical power and prefectural institution.

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