Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Hôtel de Chevigny, located Place du Marché-au-Blé in Argenton-sur-Creuse (Indre), was founded between 1484 and 1522 as a college by Antoine Barbault, Benedictine prior of Saint-Marcel. Close to Saint-Benoît Chapel, this educational institution illustrates the influence of religious orders in the transmission of knowledge to the Renaissance. Its architecture, marked by a staircase turret adorned with jewels and the founding coat of arms, bears witness to its initial prestige.

In 1573, the college was transferred to the Duke of Montpensier and then to the inhabitants of Argenton. It was transformed into a prison in 1787 and became a national good during the Revolution before being bought by the city in the year III (1794-1795). Ranked a historic monument in 1931, the building retains medieval elements despite the disappearance of its original outbuildings, such as the chapel Saint-Benoît. Today, it houses a music school, continuing its cultural vocation.

The building body, of trapezoidal plan, has a main facade centered on a staircase turret whose door has pinnacles and the coat of arms of Antoine Barbault. Originally surrounded by other buildings, including the chapel, the building underwent modifications related to its successive uses (prison, communal property). Its protection in 1931 covers the former college, also known as Hôtel de Chevigny, stressing its heritage importance in the Centre-Val de Loire.

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