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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Hotel Fortia de Montréal replaces a house acquired in 1569 in Avignon. In 1637 Paul de Fortia de Montréal, a conditional heir, built the facade on the street according to the plans of François de Royers de La Valfrenière. It decorates the interior, including a gallery adorned with 18 panels painted by Nicolas Mignard between 1633 and 1637, illustrating the Ethiopics of Heliodorus of Émèse. This decor attracts the attention of Alphonse-Louis du Plessis de Richelieu, brother of the cardinal, who recommends Mignard to Rome.

Paul de Fortia, captain of royal galley in Marseilles, took part in the battle of Vado against the Spaniards in 1638, where he was seriously wounded. His son Gaspard succeeded him as commander. In 1660, the hotel welcomed the Count and Countess of Soissons during a stay of King Louis XIV in Avignon. Sold in 1774 by the Duchess of Gadagne, he passed into several hands before being seized as a national good during the Revolution.

The hotel is divided into two parts (nos 8 and 10) in the 19th century. Ranked a historical monument in 1954 for its facades and roofs, it bears witness to the 17th century architectural influence in Avignon. His plan, prior to that of the Hotel de Crillon, would have inspired the latter, although built ten years earlier. The decorations of Mignard, sold in Paris in the 18th century, mark its artistic history.

The construction is based on a price-fact of 1637 specifying the coat of arms and carved elements of the facade. The architect François de Royers de La Valfrenière, a citizen of Avignon, directs the works. Nicolas Mignard, then in transit to Italy, made his first major orders, launched by Jules Mazarin, vice-legate of Avignon (1634–37).

The hotel illustrates the links between Provencal nobility, royal power and artistic patronage. Paul de Fortia, close to Richelieu and Louis XIII, embodies this alliance, while the visit of 1660 highlights his prestige. The revolutionary seizure and subsequent divisions reflect the political and social upheavals of the 18th and 19th centuries.

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