Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Hotel Spoelberch de Lovenjoul, located at 23 rue du Connétable in Chantilly, was built in 1731 by architect Jean Aubert for Louis IV Henri de Bourbon-Condé, seigneur of the city. This project is part of a broader urban planning plan, including the creation of the Grandes Écuries (1721) and a subdivision for the officers of the Condé, subject to strict architectural standards. The hotel, originally used as a storage unit by the princes of Condé, was sold during the French Revolution.

From 1803 to 1906, the building houses a boarding school for girls. In 1909, the Institut de France acquired the library of the Viscount Charles de Spoelberch de Lovenjoul, rich in 1,400 manuscripts of romantic writers (Balzac, George Sand, Musset, etc.). Georges Vicar, the first curator, organized the classification and inventory there until his death in 1921. During World War I, the hotel served briefly as a military hospital (1914-1917), while collections were evacuated for protection.

In 1987, the library was transferred to Paris, and the hotel was sold to private individuals. Only the facades and roofs of the eighteenth century are protected by an inscription to historical monuments on 30 March 1989. The Vicar's photographic background, bearing witness to the life of the monument during the war, remains a major source for its history.

The hotel's architecture reflects the standards imposed by Jean Aubert for the subdivision of officers, with a uniform facade on the lawn. Its history illustrates the changes in the use of private hotels, from aristocratic residence to heritage conservation and then to private habitat.

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