Jean Beaucé mansion

The beautiful Jean Beauce mansion is located right next to the town hall. Its delicate architecture immediately arouses our curiosity and makes us want to find out a little more about it. The history of this building began in 1554, when the renowned backer Jean Beauce had a magnificent mansion built in the heart of Poitiers. The façade is in the Renaissance style and is particularly appreciated for its spiral staircase tower decorated with sloping windows that adapt to the curvature of the turret to light up the interior. It was an elegant and comfortable private residence, but it was also the venue for important historical events. In 1558, the owner lent his mansion to the founding conference of the Reformed Churches of France, and then, a few years later, to the second national synod of the Reformed Churches. Now, if that doesn’t ring a bell, these were key moments in the history of Protestantism in France. It may seem like a long time ago now, but the Wars of Religion saw Catholics and Protestants torn apart during 8 long and bloody civil wars. The majority of the country was Catholic, but some areas, such as Dauphiné, Occitanie and Poitou, were Reformed. The ideas of John Calvin and other reformers gained ground, and became increasingly popular despite adverse repercussions. The Protestant communities therefore wanted to organise themselves and establish a common faith and ecclesiastical rules more in line with their values. As a reminder, they accused the Roman Catholic Church of taking advantage from the credulity of the faithful, and of not allowing them to really understand the sacred texts, which were only accessible to the clergy and only delivered in Latin. For example, they advocated for the free circulation of the Bible in French, which, at the time,was punishable by death . In short, this is where these vitally important meetings were held and they helped structure the Reformed Church, strengthen solidarity among Protestant communities and underscore their determination in the face of the persecution they were enduring at the time. The mansion was subsequently extended in the 19th century and also saw the addition of the tower and its cupola, which you can see on the right. During World War II, Poitiers was part of Vichy France, under the control of the Third Reich, and it was here that the German military police were stationed. Since then, the mansion has been carefully renovated. I’ll let you admire the fine details carved above the windows on the top floor. The building is of course listed as a historic monument and is an integral part of Poitiers’ heritage. Now converted into a private building, it comprises several flats, and unfortunately cannot be visited.