Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The hotel of Toulouse, originally named hotel of La Vrillière, is a Parisian mansion built between 1635 and 1650 by architect François Mansart for Louis I Phelypeaux, secretary of state under Louis XIII. Commanded after his marriage to Marie Particelli, daughter of a Superintendent of Finance, the building includes a gallery decorated with major paintings (Pushin, Le Guerchin) and a vault painted by François Perrier. Enlarged by Louis The Vau in 1650, it houses an exceptional collection of 230 works and books after the death of Phélypeaux in 1681.

Acquired in 1713 by Louis-Alexandre de Bourbon, Count of Toulouse and legitimized son of Louis XIV, the hotel was renovated by Robert de Cotte to reflect his rank. After the death of Louis XIV in 1715, the Duke, deposed of his title as prince of blood, opted for rock woodwork without royal references, made by Vassé and Le Goupil. The Golden Gallery, redesigned in a Regency style, hosts designs inspired by Versailles. The Duke did not live there much, preferring Rambouillet, but his widow and son, the Duke of Penthièvre, resided there after 1737.

During the Revolution, the hotel was confiscated in 1793 and looted from its works, sent to the Louvre. It became well national and was home to the National Printing from 1795 to 1808. Repurchased by the Banque de France in 1808, it was renovated by Delannoy and became its headquarters in 1811. The Golden Gallery, degraded, was restored in 1865-1870 under Napoleon III: the painted vault was replaced by a copy, and the hotel was raised. Despite partial protections (woodworks classified in 1926), its successive transformations altered its authenticity.

In the 20th century, the Bank of France expanded the hotel in 1924-1927, destroying historic buildings such as the Hotel de la Chancellerie d'Orléans. The Golden Gallery, restored in 2015, finds its golden woodwork and its bronze arms of light, which have disappeared since the Revolution. Today, the hotel mixes architectural heritage (portal of Mansart, staircase) and banking functions, while its Gallery, a place of cinematographic shoots, bears witness to its fascist past.

The hotel is inseparable from notable figures: the princess of Lamballe, intimate with Marie-Antoinette, celebrated her marriage there in 1767 before being arrested there in 1792; The poet Florian lived there before the Revolution. Its history reflects the political upheavals, from the fascists of the Ancien Régime to its conversion into a financial institution, while preserving exceptional decorations such as the original paintings (Pushin, Reni) commissioned by the Bank in the 19th century.

External links