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Origin and history

The Town Hall of the 7th arrondissement of Paris, also known as Hotel de Villars, is a historic building located at 116 rue de Grenelle. Originally, it was a mansion built between 1645 and 1657 for Jacques le Coigneux, president of mortar. The latter, an influential magistrate under the Ancien Régime, built a house typical of Parisian classical architecture of the time.

In 1710, Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars acquired and then rented the hotel, which he had renovated by architect Germain Boffrand, a major figure in the Regency style. Between 1714 and 1717, Villars enlarged the property with a new building, the small hotel of Villars, to the west. This place became his Parisian residence, reflecting his status as high military and political dignitary under Louis XIV and the Regency.

The City of Paris purchased the hotel in 1862 for 1,350,000 francs in order to install the town hall of the 7th arrondissement, which finally moved there on 1 August 1865, leaving its former location at 7 rue de Grenelle. Development work was then carried out by Joseph Uchard. In 1926, the facade overlooking the garden was listed as historic monuments, recognizing its heritage value.

Today, the building preserves a council hall called the Frédéric-Dupont Hall, in tribute to Edward Frédéric-Dupont, former mayor of the district. Close to the National Assembly and the Orsay Museum, the town hall embodies both the aristocratic heritage of the district and its contemporary administrative role.

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