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Origin and history

The Hôtel de Saint-Seine, located at 29 rue Verrerie in Dijon, is a private hotel originally erected around 1420 by Robert de Mailly, knight and chamberlain of the Dukes of Burgundy Philippe le Hardi and Jean sans Peur. Named "hotel de Mailly" and then "d'Arc-sur-Tille", it passed into the hands of the Chabot family in the 16th century, before being acquired in 1577 by the family Le Gouz de Saint-Seine, who still own it today. The present building took shape between the years 1640 and 1660, thanks to major expansions led by Bénigne and Pierre Le Gouz, councillors in the Parliament of Burgundy.

In the 17th century, Pierre Le Gouz renamed the hotel "Saint-Seine", with reference to the seigneury of Saint-Seine-sur-Vingeanne whose family earned the income. The architecture, of classical and baroque style, is structured around a rectangular courtyard closed by a cochère door decorated with symbolic sculptures (losanges, medallions, foliage). A baroque hexagonal staircase and richly decorated facades (frontons, balconyes, cornice with human face) characterize the building. In 1844, Étienne Le Gouz de Saint-Seine, Marquis and lawyer, entrusted the architect Léon Locardaire with interior arrangements neo-Renaissance, including a monumental staircase and lounges decorated with stucco.

The hotel experienced a dark episode during the Second World War: requisitioned in May 1942 by the German military administration, it houses the Feldkommandantur, formerly installed at the Dijon Palace of Justice. Since 2011, the hotel, still inhabited by the family Le Guz de Saint-Seine, has been listed as a historical monument for its remarkable elements: the 1664 staircase with its wrought iron ramp, the interior decorations (roadways, living rooms, parquet floors), and the 1844 staircase. The protections also concern busts, consoles and sculptures attributed to Jean Dubois and François Jouffroy.

The history of the hotel reflects the social and political changes of Burgundy, from the Dukes of Burgundy (15th century) to the nobility of Parliament (17th-19th centuries). Its architecture combines medieval heritages ( vaulted cellar), classical (symmetry, pilasters) and eclectic (neo-Renaissance). The Le Gouz family, owner since 1577, has preserved this heritage, while adapting to the tastes of each era, as evidenced by the interior decorations from the Restoration style to the Charles X marquetries.

Today, the Hotel de Saint-Seine illustrates the sustainability of Dijon's private hotels, often linked to the judicial and political history of the region. Its inscription in the title of historical monuments highlights the value of its baroque staircase, carved facades and interiors, where Burgundy and Parisian influences are mixed. The building remains a rare example of aristocratic hotel having retained its original residential function, while bearing the traces of four centuries of French history.

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