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Origin and history

The present building is a vestige of the Novitiate of the Jesuits of Bordeaux, founded in the seventeenth century. This college, the twelfth establishment of the order in France, was created around 1571 under the impulse of François Borgia, general of the Jesuits. Originally installed near the chapel of the Madeleine, the novitiate was officially founded in 1593, but only became operational in 1607. The Jesuits occupied several sites, including the Priory of St. James and a house dependent on the Church of St. Croix, before building their chapel and novitiate from 1612.

In 1653, a monumental door decorated with the coat of arms of donors was added to the chapel. However, the dissolution of the Society of Jesus in 1762 led to the sequestration of the buildings. Acquired by the city of Bordeaux in 1766, the site was partially demolished in the early 19th century to break through the streets of Novitiate and the Portal. Today, only the buildings of numbers 7 to 19 on Rue du Novitiate remain, originally forming a single building.

The facades on street and courtyard, as well as the corresponding roofs, were inscribed in the Historical Monuments by order of 14 September 1965. These remains recall the educational and religious importance of the Jesuits in Bordeaux, as well as the subsequent urban transformations that have fragmented this historical architectural ensemble.

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