Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée, located in Rennes (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
- Rennes, Département 35, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.1132, -1.6837
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00090738
A miraculous survivor of the fire in Rennes in 1720, the Hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée is an exceptional example of 17th-century Breton civil architecture, with its half-timbering and interior woodwork of rare elegance.
History
In the heart of Rennes, the Hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée stands like an unlikely survivor of Breton urban history. Where the great fire of 1720 consumed hundreds of timber-framed houses, this private mansion survived, preserving intact a fragment of the medieval and baroque town that the disaster almost entirely wiped out. This survival today gives it a heritage value that is unrivalled in Brittany's capital. The main facade features the cross-timbering typical of 17th-century Rennes civil engineering, which was probably originally visible before being covered up during subsequent alterations. This detail alone is enough to distinguish the building from its later neighbours, most of which were rebuilt in granite and slate after the 1720 disaster, according to plans drawn up by the architect Jacques Gabriel. Inside, visitors will discover a journey through three centuries of French taste: carved woodwork from the 17th century rubs shoulders with refined panelling from the 18th century, while some rooms still display the sober Empire furniture of the early 19th century. This decorative layering is a veritable anthology of French bourgeois interior design, rare in the region. The layout of the building is surprising in its spatial intelligence: two storeys over the ground floor, a basement at the rear, and above all a stairwell crowned by a two-storey lantern with a carina roof - the shape of an upside-down boat hull that betrays the mastery of Breton carpenters. It is around this staircase that the whole life of the house is organised, like a luminous vertical axis around which the large reception rooms revolve. Listed as a Historic Monument since 1962, the Hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée is a must-see for lovers of civil architecture, urban history enthusiasts and anyone who wants to understand what Rennes was like before fire transformed it forever. It alone embodies the memory of a sunken city.
Architecture
The Hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée is in the tradition of 17th-century Breton civil architecture, characterised by the use of half-timbering - a wooden frame with gaps filled with cob or brick - on the main façade. This half-timbering, which was probably originally visible, bears witness to the building skills typical of the Brittany of the Ancien Régime, before granite became the dominant material after the fire of 1720. The façade is two storeys high above the ground floor, in a sober but balanced composition that reflects the status of the Rennes parliamentary bourgeoisie. The most remarkable architectural feature is undoubtedly the stairwell, topped by a two-storey lantern with a hull roof. This roof, in the shape of an inverted ship's hull - a recurring motif in Breton and Norman carpentry - is both a technical feat and an aesthetic signature. It diffuses zenithal light into the heart of the residence and organises the spatial hierarchy of the complex. At the rear, a basement dug into the slope of the land adds an extra dimension to the distribution of service areas. The interior is a veritable anthology of French décor spanning three centuries. Seventeenth-century panelling with robust mouldings and geometric panels sits alongside lighter panelling and arabesque ornamentation from the eighteenth century, followed by sober pilasters and friezes in the Empire style from the early nineteenth century. In the 19th century, some openings were enlarged to form French windows, slightly altering the rhythm of the façades without betraying the general spirit. This coherent decorative stacking makes the hotel an exceptional document in the history of the decorative arts in Brittany.
Related Figures
Famille Racapé de la Feuillée — propriétaires éponymes, bourgeoisie parlementaire rennaise des XVIIe-XVIIIe sièclesJacques Gabriel — architecte chargé de la reconstruction de Rennes après l'incendie de 1720, dont l'œuvre forma le contraste avec cet édifice survivantAndré Malraux — ministre de la Culture sous de Gaulle, dont la politique patrimoniale aboutit au classement de l'hôtel en 1962Conseillers au Parlement de Bretagne — clientèle sociale typique de ce type de demeure rennaise au XVIIe siècle
Tags
Nearby castles
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée located?
Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée is located in Rennes, Département 35 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée built?
Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée open to visitors?
Maison, dite aussi hôtel Racapé de la Feuillée is currently closed to visitors.
