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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Strasburger villa, originally named Villa du Coteau, was built between 1907 and 1912 by architect Georges Pichereau for Henri de Rothschild, on the site of a farm belonging to Gustave Flaubert. This neo-Norman manor house, inspired by the Augeronne traditions (woodpans, flat tile roofs, spears) embodies the second generation of this architectural style. Its facades and roofs were listed as historical monuments in 1975.

Sold in 1924 to Ralph Beaver Strasburger, an American billionaire passionate about horse racing, the villa became his summer residence. The family held a great reception, welcoming personalities such as Vincent Scotto, Suzy Delair and Marcel Boussac. During the occupation, the Germans devastated her. In 1948, its interior was renovated in a sumptuous style, combining period furniture and modern decors (sauna in canvas, bathroom Louis XVI).

After Ralph Strasburger died in 1959 and his wife in 1975, their son Peter offered the villa in Deauville in 1980. Today, it houses cultural events and private receptions. Its park, planted with apple trees, and its interiors (office with telephone of the 1950s, room with pine-up walls) bear witness to its turbulent history, between fascist and war.

The villa combines scholarly architectural elements (imperial roof, pyramidions) and vernacular elements (damier appliances, roof tiles). Its regional park, passerby skylights and intact scenery make it a rare example of neo-normanic eclecticism. The Strassburgers, although only staying there a month a year, maintained about thirty servants for his permanent maintenance.

Built near the Touques racetrack, the villa was also a strategic place during the Second World War: an underground was dug there in 1942 to house its occupants. His legacy to the city preserved this heritage, now open to the public for events, perpetuating its role as a place of prestige and sociability.

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