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Origin and history

The house of the Sires de Villars, located in Trévoux in the Ain, is a seigneurial hotel whose origin dates back to at least the 15th century. It was the residence of the former lords of Trévoux after they abandoned their castral mot of Villars in the 14th century. Although the exact date of its construction remains unknown, a vestige of medieval capital attests to its seniority. The building was thoroughly redesigned between the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century by Pierre II de Bourbon and Anne de Beaujeu, after Peter obtained the locality of the Dombes in 1475. This period saw the addition of an inner courtyard, characteristic openings, a screw staircase, and an oriel decorated with A.P. initials (for Anne and Pierre). A 17th century engraving by Israel Sylvestre shows a monumental building, crenelated and equipped with a belfry.

In the 18th century, the house became the property of the Bellet de Tavernost family, including Nicolas, councillor and then first president of the Dombes parliament (from 1727), and François Elizabeth, attorney general in 1757. The latter made interior arrangements (walls, chimneys) and modified the facade on the garden. The French Revolution marked a turning point in 1793: the niches and belfry were dismantled, and the coats of arms were hammered. In the 19th century, new transformations took place, such as the extension of the stairway (circa 1842) and the modification of the walls and chimneys on the floors.

In 1989, the municipality of Trévoux acquired the hotel to install the tourist office and refurbish the garden, at the cost of destroying the historic gate and fence wall. The building, which was listed as a historical monument in 1991, retains remarkable architectural elements: cradle vaults and dogives, stone oriel, lantern staircase turret, and a south-to-span elevation. Its history reflects the political and social evolutions of the Dombes, from medieval lords to revolutionary institutions.

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