Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas
MonumentHidden Treasure
Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas, located in Aix-en-Provence (Bouches-du-Rhône), 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
- Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 43.5277, 5.4486
- Mérimée Reference
- PA13000033
Chef-d'œuvre d'urbanisme baroque aixois, la place d'Albertas est l'unique exemple en France d'une place royale conçue et financée par un particulier, autour d'une fontaine et d'une architecture en triplex d'une élégance rare.
History
In the heart of old Aix-en-Provence, the Place d'Albertas stands out as an interlude of classical elegance in the maze of Provencal lanes. Enclosed on three sides by buildings with perfectly ordered facades and open to the Hôtel d'Albertas, it offers that rare feeling of a town that remembers its aristocratic ambitions. Here, every stone tells the story of one man's desire to transform his neighbourhood into a manifesto of refined urbanity. What makes the square truly unique in the French heritage landscape is its private origin. Where royal squares were commissioned by royalty or local authorities, the Place d'Albertas was born of the initiative and personal fortune of Henri d'Albertas. No edict, no public commission: just the vision of a great clerk of state who wanted to clear the area around his home and give his town a space worthy of the European capitals. This paradox - the public fulfilled by the private - gives it a status that is absolutely unique in France. The visitor experience is as much about the atmosphere as the architecture. The square is on a human scale, almost intimate, and visitors are struck by the coherence of the whole: the symmetrical façades, the wrought-iron balconies, the sculpted window frames all interact with the central fountain added in 1912, whose murmur accompanies every stroll. In the golden hours, the Aix limestone takes on honey-coloured hues that transform the square into a cinema set. Just a stone's throw from the famous Cours Mirabeau and the Place de l'Hôtel-de-Ville, the Place d'Albertas is part of a natural heritage route through the 18th-century town houses, of which Aix-en-Provence has one of the finest concentrations in the world. It is one of the must-see stops in the city of water and light.
Architecture
The Place d'Albertas is a fine illustration of the principles of classical French town planning transposed to the scale of a provincial town. Its slightly trapezoidal plan, enclosed on three sides by continuous, homogeneous facades, creates an architectural enclosure whose rigour evokes the great royal squares of Paris. The opening onto the Hôtel d'Albertas, to the north, breaks the enclosure and establishes a clear visual hierarchy: the outlying buildings form a showcase for the stately home. The facades of the buildings lining the square are in the sober, elegant classical style typical of 18th-century architecture in Aix. Built in local limestone - the blond stone so typical of Aix - they are arranged in several levels punctuated by bays of windows with moulded frames, topped by balconies with refined wrought-iron railings. Cornices and horizontal bands ensure visual continuity between the various buildings, reinforcing the impression of a single, coherent design. At the centre of the square, the fountain added in 1912 punctuates the space with a decorative element in harmony with the character of the place. Sober in its composition, it testifies to the persistence, at the turn of the twentieth century, of a taste for classical forms in Provencal public spaces. The ensemble is a rare example of a private urban space with a public vocation, where residential architecture, the art of fountain-making and the demands of social representation combine in a remarkable stylistic unity.
Related Figures
Henri d'Albertas — premier président de la Cour des Comptes de Provence, commanditaire de la placeLaurent Vallon — architecte de la ville d'Aix, auteur de la rénovation de l'hôtel d'Albertas (1724)Georges Vallon — fils de Laurent Vallon, architecte concepteur de la place dans le 2e quart du XVIIIe siècleLa famille d'Albertas — grande famille de noblesse de robe provençale, mécènes de l'urbanisme aixois
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas located?
Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas is located in Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, France.
When was Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas built?
Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas open to visitors?
Immeubles formant la place d'Albertas is currently closed to visitors.
