Château du Bot: A Restored Residence in Hennebont
Site at a Glance
- Popularity
- Medium
- Country
- France
- Primary era
- Modern
- Eras represented
- Modern
- Civilizations
- French
- Site type
- Domestic
- Remains
- Castle
History
Château du Bot is a historic residence in the hamlet of Bot, in Hennebont, Morbihan, Brittany, France. In 1877, Ernest de Blignières commissioned architect Léopold Maigné to restore the building known as Vieux Bot. Ambroise Baudry undertook the interior decoration, and the work was completed in 1883.
The present building follows its predecessor’s plan but has an additional storey. Its main residential block is flanked by two perpendicular wings that project slightly on the south side. Baudry decorated the ground-floor rooms in an Orientalist style, a European approach that adapted motifs associated with the Middle East and North Africa, and used elements from demolition sites in Egypt. The decoration was intended to set off the owner’s collection of Arab objects. The decorated spaces include a vestibule, a staircase and its enclosure extending to the landing above, a billiard room, a salon, a grand salon, and a dining room.
On 7 March 2007, the château’s façades, roofs, and Baudry-decorated ground-floor rooms were registered as historic monuments.
