Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Saint-Louis hospital was created in 1607 by Henri IV to relieve the Hôtel-Dieu during plague outbreaks in Paris. Located outside the city walls, near the old gibet of Montfaucon, it was designed as an intermittent hospital to isolate infectious patients. The first stone was laid by the king on 13 July 1607, and the construction, led by Claude Vellefaux and inspired by Claude Chastillon, was completed in 1612. Originally named "Maison de la Santé", he was renamed a tribute to Louis IX, who died of dysentery in 1270.

The hospital became permanent after the fire of the Hôtel-Dieu in 1772, marking a turning point in its history. In the 19th century, he specialized in dermatology under the leadership of Jean-Louis Alibert, founder of the first world school in this field. The Museum of Moldings, created in 1855, and innovations such as therapeutic baths (1816) strengthened its reputation. The architecture, inspired by the Place des Vosges, includes a square courtyard surrounded by brick and limestone buildings, with pavilions and a chapel.

In the 20th century, the hospital adapted to modern needs: a new housing complex was built in the 1980s, preserving the classified historical buildings (chapel, pavilions, pharmacy). In 2012, he hosted the centre of the Great Burns of Paris, centralizing care previously dispersed. Today, there is still a referral hospital (CHU) in dermatology, haematology and cancerology, employing 2,500 people.

The Saint-Louis Hospital is also marked by successive heritage protections: rankings and inscriptions for historical monuments between 1937 and 2006. Its history reflects the evolution of medical care, from the quarantine of the pests to modern research, while maintaining a strong link with its original architecture and its role in the TV series Navarro.

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