Les hôtels particuliers de Senlis

Some of these private mansions open the doors to their gardens and cellars during the European Heritage Days in September, so don't hesitate to visit them then!

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the town's notables built remarkable private mansions, the façades of which you can admire in the cobbled streets in the heart of the town.

-Hôtel Germain, place Gérard de Nerval: named after Jacques Germain, the king's secretary in 1608. The classical-style building, remodeled in the 18th century, alternates rectangular and circular dormers under curved pediments, topped by a fire pot, with large French windows.
It is set in parkland, surrounded by a splendid wall with confronting spirals and pierced by a noble triumphal-arched portal with bossing and pilasters. Two superb cellars remain in place of the 13th and 14th century buildings, the first having been used as a quarry and the second vaulted at the end of the 13th century.

-Hôtel d?Hérivaux, rue de la Chancellerie: this house is wrongly nicknamed Hôtel de la Chancellerie, because one of its inhabitants, Henri de Marle, was Chancellor of France in the early 15th century. Its Renaissance facade, remodeled in the 18th century, features a central pilaster incorporating Doric capitals on the first floor, Ionic capitals on the second floor and Corinthian capitals on the second. Two corner towers frame the façade, with a symmetrical window at the top accentuating the impression of height.

-Hôtel du Haubergier, rue du Haubergier: a three-storey brick and stone residence dating from the early 16th century, listed as a historic monument. From the street, you can admire the gargoyles under the roof, as well as a corner niche containing a small statue and chimeras. In 1926, the hotel became a museum, housing the collections of the Senlis Society of History and Archaeology until their transfer in 1982 to the former episcopal palace, now the Museum of Art and Archaeology. Today, it is once again privately owned.

-Chantrerie Saint-Rieul, place Mauconseil: this former canons' mansion, known to Senlis residents as "la Grande Chantrerie", boasts some very fine 14th-century Gothic rooms. The building is topped by a 16th-century turret with a conical roof. Hôtel de Cornouaille, rue du chat Haret Formerly the canonical house of Sainte-Anne (from 1359 to 1582), also known as the Hôtel de la Marine, belonged to the de Cornouaille family in 1626. The two-storey building was rebuilt in the 17th century, with a Mansard roof pierced by small dormers with triangular and curvilinear pediments. The Cornouaille coat of arms surmounts the main doorway, and the hotel gable features an antique-style vessel crowned by a crown.

Other private mansions are also worth a visit: Hôtel Saint-Simon, Hôtel de la Londe, Hôtel de l'Ange?

DATAtourisme France