Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The house located at 41 rue Froide, in the old town centre of Caen (Calvados, Normandy), is a hybrid architectural testimony. Its oldest part, a manor house with a trunk turret, dates back to the 15th century, when Caen was a prosperous city under Anglo-French influence after the Hundred Years War. Subsequent changes in the 17th and 18th centuries reflect the evolution of urban tastes and needs, notably with the addition of a classic street façade, characteristic of bourgeois residential architecture of the period.

The building is built of Caen stone, an emblematic material of the region, used since the Middle Ages for its aesthetic appearance and durability. The 18th-century street façade contrasts with the inner courtyard where the medieval mansion remains, thus illustrating the historical strata of the building. This type of configuration — a modern facade masking an old structure — was common in expanding cities, where owners adapted their housing to contemporary standards while retaining heritage elements.

The facade and stairwell of the house were listed as historic monuments on June 25, 1929, an early recognition of their heritage value in a context where the protection of the old building was gaining importance in France. This inscription is part of a broader dynamic of preservation of the historic centre of Caen, marked by the destruction of the Second World War (not mentioned in the sources, but known context). Today, the building embodies the superimposition of time, typical of Norman heritage.

The Rue Froide, where the house is located, is a medieval Caen artery, whose route has changed little since the Middle Ages. His name may evoke his northern orientation or his lack of sunshine, a common hypothesis for ancient odonyms. The district, dense and preserved, concentrates several other listed monuments, highlighting the historical importance of this area. The house at 41 Rue Froide s.

External links