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Origin and history

The Royal Notary House of Pallier, located in the village of Gentioux-Pigerolles (Creuse, Nouvelle-Aquitaine), was built in 1760-1761 on the initiative of Alexis Jabouille, a member of a line of royal notaries active since the end of the 17th century. The building, built in stone, features a two-storey facade and a two-sided staircase. The dates of construction are engraved on the chimney strain (1760) and above the door (1761), accompanied by the initials A.J.

Originally, this house had an agricultural vocation, a function it retained until the 1980s. Close to the former hospital command office of Carrières, possibly linked to the Templars before them, it was also the residence of Alexis Jabouille, who became a justice of the peace in the canton of Gentioux before his death in 1798. Ranked a historic monument in 1996 for its façade and staircase, it was transformed into guest rooms (Commanderie de Pallier) at the end of the 20th century, before ending this activity in 2008.

The site is surrounded by medieval remains, such as a 12th-century chapel and a cemetery with grave slabs engraved with the Maltese cross, reminiscent of the hospital and temple history of the places. A reconstruction of a medieval garden (aromatic plants, roses, tree of life) completes the whole, highlighting the link between built heritage and local history.

The house also illustrates the role of royal notaries in the management of land and tithes: Alexis Jabouille was co-farmer of the tithes of the Priory of La Villedieu and of the Commandery of Carrières, reflecting the involvement of local elites in the rural economy of Ancien Régime. His name remains associated with this place, despite the confusion with the neighboring command office, whose capital was in fact in Gentioux and then Saint-Moreil.

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