Fire of Châteaudun 21 juin 1723 (≈ 1723)
Destruction of more than 1,000 homes.
1777
Construction of city hall
Construction of city hall 1777 (≈ 1777)
Stone building on the square.
18 août 1953
Front protection
Front protection 18 août 1953 (≈ 1953)
Inventory of Historical Monuments.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
Façades and roofs on the square with a return to the streets of Chartres and Toutfaire (cad. A 417): inscription by decree of 18 August 1953
Key figures
Jules Hardouin - Building Controller
Author of the reconstruction plan.
Origin and history
The building of Châteaudun is part of the vast reconstruction project of the city after the great 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 square, designed to structure the urban space, was originally to consist of four large projecting pavilions, two of which were later replaced by the Town Hall (1777) and a Post Hall (1900).
The facades and roofs of this building, located on the Place du 18-Octobre, were protected by an order of inscription on 18 August 1953 for their heritage value. The original project included arches and symmetrical buildings, but only two of the four pavilions planned were built. The ensemble illustrates the rational urban planning of the eighteenth century, marked by a desire for regularity and monumentality.
The square, today named Place du 18-October, retains traces of this ambitious plan, although some parts have been modified over the centuries. The building, with its protected facades and roofs, bears witness to this systematic reconstruction and the influence of royal architects in the development of provincial cities after a disaster.
