Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Huger de Vernelles hotel, located 10 rue de Vernevelle in La Flèche (Sarthe), is a remarkable example of classical architecture from the first quarter of the eighteenth century. Built between 1702 and 1704 by the Parisian architect Jacques V Gabriel for Louis Huger de la Morlière, lawyer at the presidial of La Flèche, the building adopts a U-shaped plan with a main body framed by two wings of communes. The paved courtyard, with a central well, opens onto the street through a gate, while a closed garden extends the back of the house. Inside, a stone staircase surmounted by a wrought iron ramp serves the floors, and the basement, vaulted in a cradle, retains traces of 17th century buildings re-used.

The hotel has had several uses over the centuries. In the 19th century, it temporarily housed the nuns of Notre-Dame, before becoming private property. Since 1987, it has been classified as Historic Monuments (after a first inscription in 1981), protecting its architecture and interior decorations, partially redesigned at the end of the 18th century. Today, the hotel combines heritage preservation and modernity by hosting contemporary art exhibitions, while preserving original elements such as old fireplaces or semi-cradle vaults.

The building bears witness to the influence of Parisian architects in the province at the beginning of the 18th century, with typical features of the period: symmetry of facades, broken croup roofs, and rational distribution of spaces ( stables, kitchens, domestic housing). The wings in return of square, covered with broken appetites, frame a functional court, reflecting the social and domestic organization of the local elites. The reshaping of chimneys and vegetable gardens at the end of the 18th century illustrates the evolution of lifestyles and decorative tastes.

The location of the hotel, in the city centre of La Flèche, is part of an urban fabric marked by the educational and religious history of the city, notably with the Henri-IV college founded in the seventeenth century. The 1987 classification underlines its heritage value, while its openness to contemporary art perpetuates its cultural role. The available sources (Wikipedia, Monumentum, Merimée base) confirm its architectural and historical importance in the Sarthe department.

External links