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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Alexandre House, located 1 rue Porte-Bretonnie in Montluçon (Allier, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes), is an exceptional testimony of the civil architecture of transition between flamboyant Gothic art and the Renaissance. Built in 1513 by master mason Colin Magniet for Pierre Alexandre, master of arts, it replaces an old house in wooden strips considered cumbersome for circulation. Its alignment with the highway is the result of an agreement with the consuls of Montluçon, for compensation.

The house, for mixed use (bourgeois upstairs, merchant on the ground floor), is distinguished by its facades adorned with low-hanging bays, carved medallions and a torso column supporting a niche. The decorations combine Gothic motifs (accolades, hooks) and Renaissance (floral interlaces). The façade on Porte-Bretnie Street features a basket handle door with a face inscribed in a triangle, while the floor features a large, molded window.

Partially classified as historical monuments in 1928 (facades and roofs), the Alexander house was originally backed by the small schools of the city, built in 1512-1513. In the 17th century, it was close to the home of Bérard Bridier, butcher merchant and influential family of Montluçon. Its materials (galets of the Cher, stones, tile) and its lack of corbellation reflect the new urban norms of the time.

Originally lime coated, the house lost its original appearance after cement joints. Its strategic location, at the intersection of two lively streets and facing the hall of the butcher shop, underscores its role in the commercial and social life of Montluçon in the sixteenth century.

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