Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Frascaty Hotel is a private hotel built under the Regency, from 1715, by Gauthier de Boisset, then receiver of the salt attic. This emblematic building of Castres, in the Tarn, belonged to several prominent personalities, including Louis Auguste de Bourbon, Marquis de Malauze, who died there in 1741. The hotel was then bought in 1753 by Pierre de Thomas de Labarthe, seigneur of Cuq-Toulza and Roquevidal, and passed on to his son Claude de Thomas de Labarthe, Marshal of camp and governor of Castres until 1790.

Between 1791 and 1802, the building served as a municipal archive for the city. In 1814 the Marshal of Empire Jean-de-Dieu Soult established his headquarters there, thus marking its strategic importance during the First Empire. From 1864, the hotel welcomed a congregation of the Carmelite order, founded in the same year. After major restorations in 1951 and 1979, the Carmel de Castres disappeared in 2012, leaving the hotel today on sale, but sometimes opened during the Journées du Patrimoine.

The fountain in the hotel's inner courtyard has been listed as historical monuments since 1948. It dates back to the 17th century and is a remarkable element of this architectural ensemble. The name Frascaty comes from adjacent public gardens, built in the 19th century and inspired by the Italian gardens of Frascati. These gardens, created in 1865, replace an old abalone grove and incorporate a statue of Joan of Arc.

The Frascaty Hotel thus illustrates centuries of local history, combining architectural heritage, military and religious life. Its evolution reflects the urban transformations of Castres, notably with the disappearance of fortifications at the end of the eighteenth century and the development of surrounding public spaces.

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