Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye
MonumentHidden Treasure
Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye, located in Fougères (Département 35), is a Renaissance château built in the 16th century. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- autre
- Period
- Renaissance (16th century)
- Location
- Fougères, Département 35, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.3546, -1.2016
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00090561
Au cœur de Fougères, cet hôtel particulier du XVIIIe siècle abrita la naissance du marquis de La Rouërie, héros de la Révolution américaine et figure légendaire de la résistance bretonne.
History
Discreet and elegant, the former Hôtel de la Belinaye stands out in the urban fabric of Fougères as a silent testimony to the tumultuous times that forged modern Brittany and America. Built in the second quarter of the 18th century, this beautiful mansion in the classical French style bears the memory of an extraordinary destiny: that of the Marquis de La Rouërie, who was born here on 11 April 1751. Fougères, a fortified town perched on the steps of Brittany, is not short of historic monuments. But the Hôtel de la Belinaye has a singularity that no medieval fortification can claim: having been the birthplace of a man who crossed the Atlantic to fight alongside La Fayette, befriended George Washington and then returned to France to instil the spirit of resistance in the hearts of Breton royalists. This dual dimension - American and Chouanne - gives the site a rare historical depth. Listed as a Monument Historique since 1928, the building is in the tradition of eighteenth-century Breton civil architecture: sober, harmonious, carved from local granite, without ostentation but with the quiet dignity typical of the bourgeois and aristocratic residences of western France. Its monumental listing is a token of national recognition for what it represents as much as for what it is architecturally. A visit to this monument is aimed above all at history buffs, lovers of the Revolutionary period and those curious about the great American adventure as seen from Brittany. It is an ideal part of a wider tour of Fougères, alongside the medieval castle and the Musée de la Villéon, making for a dense and coherent day of discovery. Don't forget to stop and contemplate in front of the façade, just long enough to let the names of Washington, La Fayette and Colonel Armand ring out in your ears.
Architecture
The Hôtel de la Belinaye belongs to the tradition of classical French civil architecture as it was expressed in Brittany in the 18th century: an appropriate sobriety, heir to the Versailles canons but tempered by local taste and the constraints of regional materials. The façade, probably laid out in regular bays with moulded windows, reflects the aesthetic of provincial town houses of the Louis XV period - neither austere nor lavish, but balanced and dignified. Breton granite, an omnipresent material in Fougerais construction, undoubtedly dominates the composition of the walls, giving the building the bluish-grey hue characteristic of homes in the region. The roof, with its steep slope in keeping with Breton architectural tradition, would have been covered in slate, a material extracted from local quarries in Ille-et-Vilaine and Maine, which gives the roofs of Fougères their dark, velvety appearance under the changing light of the Armorican sky. The interior layout was probably based on the main dwelling flanked by wings or outbuildings, with rooms arranged according to the aristocratic custom of the time: a series of drawing rooms, a ceremonial bedroom and a study. The residence, a respectable size for a provincial noble family, testifies to the status of the Tuffin de La Rouërie family in Fougères society during the Age of Enlightenment.
Related Figures
Marquis de La Rouërie (Armand-Charles Tuffin, 1751-1793) — né dans cette demeure, héros de la Révolution américaine et fondateur de la Conjuration bretonneGeorge Washington — ami personnel de La Rouërie, qui lui accorda le grade de brigadier général dans l'armée continentaleLa Fayette (Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette) — compagnon d'armes de La Rouërie lors de la Révolution américaineFamille de La Rouërie (Tuffin) — lignée noble bretonne propriétaire de la demeure au XVIIIe siècleFamille de la Belinaye — famille ayant donné son nom à l'hôtel, propriétaires ou alliés des Tuffin
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye located?
Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye is located in Fougères, Département 35 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye built?
Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye open to visitors?
Ancien hôtel de la Belinaye is currently closed to visitors.
