Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The building of Châteaudun is part of the vast reconstruction project of the city after the devastating fire of 21 June 1723, which destroyed more than 1,000 houses. Jules Hardouin, the building controller, was commissioned to redraw the city centre according to a chessboard plan, with a large rectangular square surrounded by public buildings and uniform houses. The facades were designed to harmonize the whole, with arcades housing shops and prominent pavilions planned at the ends.

The central square, designed in precise geometric proportions, was to accommodate four large projecting buildings, of which only two were realized: the stone town hall (1777) and a private building. The two missing pavilions on the opposite side were finally replaced by a post office hotel built in 1900. The current building, whose facades and roofs on the square have been protected since 1953, bears witness to this classic urban ambition.

Hardouin's project reflected the principles of rational planning of the 18th century, mixing functionality (archive shops, regular alignments) and monumentality (public stone buildings). Although partially realized, this plan has long marked the landscape of Châteaudun, with elements such as the Place du 18-October, where the building is located. The 1953 protection specifically concerns facades and roofs overlooking the square, with a return to the street of the Republic.

External links