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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

Villa Repiquet is a remarkable house on the island of La Réunion, located at 25 rue de Paris in Saint-Denis. Built between 1839 and 1844, it is the first stone house on the island, built on land belonging to Étienne Dureau de Vaulcomte. The couple Zélie Dureau de Vaulcomte and Benjamin Bédier, after gathering plots between 1826 and 1839, built a masonry house with outbuildings, marked by its two roofs with four sides, a rarity for the time.

In 1858, the property changed hands twice: it went first to Denis-André Le Coat de Kveguen and then to Victor Thomy Lory des Landes. The latter alters the structure by closing the variangues and adding a gallery connecting the house bodies, supported by canned cast iron columns. These transformations reflect the evolution of architectural tastes and the influence of wealthy owners, often linked to the island's sugar industry.

In the 20th century, the villa underwent major modifications. Between 1928 and 1930, Adrien Lagourgue, director of the Stella Matutina factory and president of the General Council, had a wrought iron gate installed to close the Creole garden. In 1962, after cyclone Jenny, which destroyed the original roof, his daughter Solange Repiquet replaced the four-paned roof with a reinforced concrete slab, giving the villa its present appearance as a flat-roofed square. A plaque reminds me that Michel Debré lived there.

In 2022, Sophie Repiquet, great-granddaughter of Adrien Lagourgue, bought the villa to undertake a complete renovation, estimated until 2026. Listed as an additional inventory of historic monuments since 7 August 1990 for its facades, roofs, outbuildings and fence, Villa Repiquet has been open to the public since January 2024, testifying to the architectural and social history of La Réunion.

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