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Origin and history

The Consular Palace of Pézenas, built between the 16th and 18th centuries, is an emblematic monument of the civil architecture of Languedoc. It is composed of two distinct parts: a Renaissance façade with sills visible on the side street, and a 17th century monumental forebody, ionic order, decorated with ironwork signed by Jacques Pharamond. The interior staircase, dated from the early 17th century, presents a ramp with a core wall, with pendants from Valencia that served as a model for other regional buildings such as the Grange aux Prés or the Château de Lézignan-la-Cèbe. His tympanum, once decorated with coats of arms and military trophies, was staked.

A former consular house, the palace housed the Cour des Aides de Montpellier in 1622 and welcomed the states of Languedoc, which voted for the Révolte du Languedoc on 22 July 1632. The consulate, attested from 1241, occupied this site until the Revolution. The building also included a prison, an arsenal, and an archive chamber created in 1625 to replace storage in the church bell tower of Saint John. Among the major works, there were changes in 1552 (window at cross street Canabasserie), the construction of the chapel Saint-Roch in 1652 in ex-voto after the plague of 1645, and the building of the communal belfry in 1693.

The avant-corps, threatening to ruin, was rebuilt in the 18th century according to the plans of Jacques Cavalier, collaborator of Jean-Baptiste Franque, an avignon architect known for the collegiate Saint-Jean. The palace, classified as a Historical Monument (decrees of 1931 and 1944 for its facades, ironworks, roofs, belfry and staircase), illustrates the political and architectural evolution of Pézenas, passing from consular seat to Tribunal de Commerce, then to Maison des Métiers d'Art. Its staircase, its doors with carved frames and its door windows bear witness to the transition between Renaissance and classicism.

The stylistic duality of the palace reflects its turbulent history: the left part of the side façade, d-order XVIIe, contrasts with the Renaissance windows of the right part. This architectural stratification highlights the successive adaptations of the building to institutional needs, from consular deliberations to contemporary judicial functions. The protected elements, such as the fountain or the inside door of 1552, recall its central role in Pezen public life.

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