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Origin and history

The wooden house on 34 Voltaire Street in Chinon, dated from the 14th and 15th centuries, is distinguished by its typical medieval structure. Built at the corner of two streets, its wooden facades were later covered with slate. The ground floor and roof have been transformed, but the stone staircase turret and some original elements remain. This monument illustrates the civil architecture of the late Middle Ages in Touraine, marked by the use of woodpan and practical arrangements such as wells integrated with facades.

According to a local tradition, the western facade once housed a well with a wide margin on which Jeanne d'Arc would have leaned down a horse when he passed through Chinon. This margin, removed around 1862, was moved to a nearby farm, while the well was modified to install a pump. Although this anecdote belongs to the oral tradition, it contributes to the reputation of the house, classified as Historic Monument by decree of 12 November 1926.

The building combines a variety of materials: a ground floor partially covered in stone, a stone staircase turret, and wooden panels without decoration. These characteristics reflect the successive adaptations of the building, while maintaining traces of its medieval use. The location at the intersection of Voltaire Street and Jeanne d'Arc Street reinforces its anchor in the urban history of Chinon, a city marked by its royal and military past.

The protection of the house in 1926 emphasized its heritage value, although its exact location was considered to be of poor accuracy (note 5/10). Today, the building does not seem to be open to the visit, but its history and architecture make it a valuable testimony of everyday life in the 15th century in Val de Loire, a region then prosperous thanks to the river trade and the proximity of the royal courts.

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