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Origin and history

The house in Richelieu is part of the ambitious urban project launched by Cardinal Richelieu in the 17th century. Born in this village, he decided to transform it into a planned city, entrusting the plans to architect Jacques Lemercier, known for his work on the castle. The geometric path, with its symmetrical streets, ditches, and monumental gates, reflects a will of order and grandeur, characteristic of the ideal cities of the time.

The town of Richelieu, conceived as a harmonious ensemble, required a strict alignment of the houses, whose facades and roofs were often protected for their heritage value. This house, whose facade and roof have been inscribed in the Historic Monuments since 1932, bears witness to this architectural uniformity. Its location on the Market Square, the economic heart of the city, highlights its role in the daily and commercial life of the time.

The Richelieu project was part of a broader approach to territorial control and prestige, combining political power and classical aesthetics. Houses, like this one, were both houses and elements of an urban decor designed to impress. Their preservation today makes it possible to understand the ambition of a man of the Church who became a builder, lastingly marking the landscape of the Touraine.

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