Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye
MonumentHidden Treasure
Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye, located in Saint-Malo (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
- Saint-Malo, Département 35, Bretagne
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 48.6467, -2.0254
- Mérimée Reference
- PA00090816
In the heart of Saint-Malo's inner city, the Hôtel de la Grassinaye houses an exceptionally elegant straight staircase dating from 1715, an intact example of the domestic architecture of the Grand Siècle in Saint-Malo.
History
Tucked away in the dense urban fabric of Saint-Malo's inner city, the Hôtel de la Grassinaye belongs to that category of middle-class residences that make up the silent wealth of Saint-Malo's heritage. Neither a château nor a palace, it is a private mansion of character, built in the early 18th century in a town at the height of its commercial and maritime power. It is the perfect embodiment of the architectural ambitions of an armatorial bourgeoisie who, enriched by ocean-going trade and racing, wanted to mark the success of their century in stone. What sets the Hôtel de la Grassinaye apart from its neighbours is above all its interior staircase, the centrepiece of the residence and the main reason for its protection as a Historic Monument. Dated precisely to 1715, this straight staircase rests on a low vault of excellent technical quality, typical of the skills of Breton masons of the period. Its carefully crafted wooden baluster banister testifies to the refined taste of those who commissioned it at the time, attentive to the details that distinguish an ordinary home from a quality interior. The very history of this banister is a novel in miniature: it disappeared during the French Revolution, at a time when symbols of bourgeois opulence were sometimes destroyed or reused, and was replaced in the 19th century by a banister in the Second Empire style. This architectural palimpsest - a core from 1715 clad with a Napoleonic addition - gives the staircase a fascinating dual historical interpretation. Visiting the Hôtel de la Grassinaye also means immersing yourself in the unique atmosphere of Saint-Malo's inner city, a town that was completely rebuilt after the 1944 bombings, but where a number of private mansions have retained their original interior layouts. In this context, the residence takes on an added heritage value: it is one of the rare authentic witnesses to the interior life of the privateer city at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. For lovers of civil architecture and urban history, the Hôtel de la Grassinaye offers an intimate window onto Malo society under the Ancien Régime, a far cry from the great figures of Duguay-Trouin or Surcouf, but just as revealing of an era when Saint-Malo was establishing itself as one of the leading trading centres in the kingdom.
Architecture
The Hôtel de la Grassinaye is in the tradition of Malouin private mansions from the early 18th century, characterised by a sober façade in Brittany granite, a rational interior layout and particular attention paid to the interior decor. Like most of the mansions in the inner city, the building probably had a compact floor plan dictated by the density of plots in the walled town, with a careful vertical distribution over several storeys. The main architectural feature of the residence is its straight staircase dating from 1715. Technically, it rests on a low vault, an elegant structural solution that provides a passageway under the staircase while ensuring the solidity of the whole. This type of vaulting, typical of Breton masonry from the classical period, testifies to the technical mastery of local craftsmen. The wooden banister with turned balusters, which has been partially preserved in its original state, is representative of the Louis XIV decorative vocabulary that spread from Paris and Versailles to prosperous provincial urban centres. The Second Empire addition, added in the 19th century to replace the section that had disappeared, is in a more ornate, busy style, providing a stylistic contrast that can be seen by the discerning eye. The building as a whole is in the classical French style, tinged with Breton austerity, common in Saint-Malo where granite imposes its constraints but also its nobility. The steeply pitched roofs, mullioned or wood-panelled windows and sober facades are all features shared with the other private mansions in the walled town, forming a coherent urban ensemble of which La Grassinaye is one of the earliest examples still standing.
Related Figures
Famille de la Grassinaye — famille bourgeoise malouine ayant donné son nom à la demeure, vraisemblablement liée au négoce maritime du début du XVIIIe siècleCommanditaire anonyme de 1715 — maître d'ouvrage ayant fait construire l'escalier et sa rampe d'origine, figure emblématique de la bourgeoisie armatoriale malouine sous Louis XIVLouis XIV — dont le règne se termine en 1715, année de construction de l'escalier, marquant l'apogée du style classique français diffusé dans les provincesArtisans maçons et menuisiers malouins du début du XVIIIe siècle — auteurs anonymes de la voûte surbaissée et de la rampe à balustres, représentants d'un savoir-faire local d'exception
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye located?
Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye is located in Saint-Malo, Département 35 department, Bretagne region, France.
When was Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye built?
Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye dates back to a period built during the Renaissance (16th century).
Is Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye open to visitors?
Maison ou Hôtel de la Grassinaye is currently closed to visitors.