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Origin and history

The Hotel Gamenson, also called Logis Saint-Front, is a private hotel located in the heart of Périgueux, in the Dordogne department. Its construction mainly dates back to the 15th century, although older traces (early 14th century) were identified in the kitchen courtyard. The building, a private property located 7 rue de la Constitution, is distinguished by its wrought iron balcony and polygonal staircase tower, characteristic of the perigord architecture of the period.

The hotel was built by the family of Puy (or Dupuy), a powerful local lineage that provided twenty mayors and ten consuls in Périgueux between 1319 and 1561. The coats of arms of the family, visible on a badge, confirm their possession of the place until the sixteenth century. In 1513, Marie du Puy, daughter of Jean du Puy (twice mayor), married Martial de Chabans, marking the transition from the hotel to this new family. Municipal records indicate that the Puy had resided in the neighbourhood since 1341, without any further evidence prior to 1529.

In the 19th century, the hotel changed hands several times: sold in 1803 to M. de Borros de Gamanson by Mme Grand de Bellussière (heritage of the Chabans), it became the property of André-Delphin Borros de Gamanson, mayor of Périgueux in 1850. Between 1915 and 1921 he served as a bishop, as evidenced by the coat of arms of Monsignor River on the tympanum of the Gothic gate. Occupied by the regional direction of historical monuments until the 1980s, it was classified as a historical monument on 16 October 1964. Repurchased in 2007, his condition has since deteriorated due to lack of maintenance.

The architecture of the Hotel Gamenson combines defensive elements (polygonal tower) with Renaissance decorations, such as the well with square columns in the courtyard. The round turret in corbellation and the murals discovered in the 19th century (study by the Count of Fayolle) underline its heritage importance. Despite its ranking, the building, now private, remains inaccessible to the public and threatens to deteriorate.

The historical sources, including the bulletins of the Société archéologique du Périgord and the works of Guy Penaud, document its evolution. The coats of arms of the Puy ("Gold in the oak of the Sinople, with the head of the Dázur in charge of three lilies d ́or") and the municipal archives confirm its central role in the urban history of Périgueux, reflecting the alliances and power of the local elites from the Middle Ages to the modern era.

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