The Hôtel Saint-Pol was a royal residence begun in 1360 by

Charles V of France Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (french: le Sage; la, Sapiens), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War, with his armi ...

on the ruins of a building constructed by

Louis IX Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), commonly known as Saint Louis or Louis the Saint, was King of France from 1226 to 1270, and the most illustrious of the Direct Capetians. He was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the d ...

. It was used by Charles V and Charles VI. Located on the

Right Bank In geography, a bank is the land alongside a body of water. Different structures are referred to as ''banks'' in different fields of geography, as follows. In limnology (the study of inland waters), a stream bank or river bank is the terrai ...

, to the northwest of the Quartier de l'Arsenal in the

4th arrondissement of Paris The 4th arrondissement of Paris (''IVe arrondissement'') is one of the twenty arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''quatrième''. Along with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd arrondissement ...

, the residence's grounds stretched from the Quai des Célestins to the Rue Saint-Antoine, and from the Rue Saint-Paul to the Rue du Petit-Musc. It fell into disuse and ruin after the death of

Isabeau de Bavière Isabeau of Bavaria (or Isabelle; also Elisabeth of Bavaria-Ingolstadt; c. 1370 – September 1435) was Queen of France from 1385 to 1422. She was born into the House of Wittelsbach as the only daughter of Duke Stephen III of Bavaria-Ingol ...

in 1435 and was demolished after

François I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...

sold it in parts at auction in 1543.Lorentz and Sandron 2006, pp. 90–91.

History

In 1360 Charles V began constructing Hôtel Saint-Pol from the Hôtel du Petit-Musc, purchased in 1318 by Louis of Bourbon, a grandson of Louis IX. From then until 1364, Charles continued to improve and develop it by acquiring additional property, including the newer Hôtel d'Étampes in 1361, and ordering the construction of new buildings.Emery 2015, pp. 206–207. The king, who could not stand the pestilential odours of Paris and the problems they caused his health, appreciated its location outside the medieval city. He valued the residence for its calm and its cleaner environment, which he claimed had helped him avoid illnesses, and more importantly recover good health. On 28 January 1393, the

Bal des Ardents The ''Bal des Ardents'' (Ball of the Burning Men), also called ''Bal des Sauvages'' (Ball of the Wild Men), was a masquerade ballSources vary whether the event was a masquerade or a masque. held on 28 January 1393 in Paris at which Charles ...

took place at the Hôtel Saint-Pol. Four noble dancers caught fire and were burned to death, while Charles VI and another dancer barely escaped the flames.

Expansion of the park of the Hôtel Saint-Pol

The Hôtel Saint-Pol was not a single building, but consisted of three important dwellings making up the royal residence: one dwelling for the king, one for the queen (the former Hôtel d'Étampes), one for their children (the former Hôtel des Abbés de Saint-Maur). All had rooms for banquets and entertainments given by the king, and rooms for guests. Charles V had the residence luxuriously decorated according to his personal tastes, with precious woods, paintings, and goldwork. Walls were decorated with hangings embroidered with pearls, and books were displayed on the furniture, along with golden ornaments. Two chapels were built in the residence, one for the king, the other for his consort,

Joanna of Bourbon Joanna of Bourbon (''Jeanne de Bourbon''; 3 February 1338 – 6 February 1378) was Queen of France by marriage to King Charles V. She acted as his political adviser and was appointed potential regent in case of a minor regency. Life Early ...

. The ''hôtel'' included a remarkable collection of precious books that the king enjoyed assembling, including those of his father,

John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–1 ...

, who had also been a great lover of books. This collection allowed Charles V to create the Royal Library, which would later become the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The Bibliothèque nationale de France (, 'National Library of France'; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository ...

, France's national library in Paris. Within his own residence, Charles V included a room for the Conseil du Roi where affairs of state were conducted.

Etiquette

The Hôtel Saint-Pol and other palaces were the sites where the first versions of a royal etiquette at the French

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

were developed. Charles V, for instance, had his servants dressed in liveries appropriate to the stature of a king of France.

The Hôtel Saint-Pol in the 15th and 16th centuries

After Charles VII fled to

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, t ...

in 1418, the Hôtel Saint-Pol was abandoned by Charles and his successors.

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

preferred the

Château de Plessis-lez-Tours The Royal Château de Plessis-lèz-Tours is the remains of a late Gothic château located in the town of La Riche in the Indre-et-Loire department, in the Loire Valley of France. Around three fourths of the former royal residence were pulled down ...

, and when visiting Paris stayed at the

Château de Vincennes The Château de Vincennes () is a former fortress and royal residence next to the town of Vincennes, on the eastern edge of Paris, alongside the Bois de Vincennes. It was largely built between 1361 and 1369, and was a preferred residence, after ...

. Charles VIII,

Louis XII Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his 2nd cousin once removed and brother in law at the tim ...

, and

Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...

lived in the Loire Valley or at the

Château de Fontainebleau Palace of Fontainebleau (; ) or Château de Fontainebleau, located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. The medieval castle and subsequent palace served as a residence f ...

, and the Hôtel Saint-Pol fell into ruin. In 1519, part of it was sold by order of Francis I, and several years later, it was completely demolished. A wall of the church of Saint-Paul, which formed part of the ''hôtel'', survives to this day.

Notes

Bibliography

* Bordonove, Georges (1988). ''Les Rois qui ont fait la France - Les Valois - Charles V le Sage'', vol. 1, éditions Pygmalion. . * Emery, Anthony (2016). ''Seats of Power in Europe during the Hundred Years War: An Architectural Study from 1330 to 1480''. Oxford: Oxbow Books. . * Lorentz, Philippe; Dany Sandron (2006). ''Atlas de Paris au Moyen Âge''. Paris: Parigramme. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Hotel Saint-Pol Saint-Pol Former buildings and structures in Paris Saint-Pol Hotel Saint-Paul Buildings and structures demolished in the 16th century