Hôtel de Soissons

Hôtel de Soissons
1650 engraving by Israël Silvestre of the Hôtel de la Reine in Paris. The central and right-hand sections are those built during Catherine's lifetime. The Colonne de l'Horoscope can be seen in the background, to the right.
General information
Type	Hôtel particulier
Classification	Demolished
Address	2, rue de Viarmes
Town or city	Paris (1st arrondissement)
Country	France
Coordinates	48°51′46″N 2°20′34″E / 48.862731°N 2.342780°E / 48.862731; 2.342780Coordinates: 48°51′46″N 2°20′34″E / 48.862731°N 2.342780°E / 48.862731; 2.342780
Construction started	1574
Completed	1584
Demolished	1748
Design and construction
Architect	Jean Bullant

The Hôtel de Soissons was a hôtel particulier (grand house) built in Paris, France, between 1574 and 1584 for Catherine de' Medici (1519–89) by the architect Jean Bullant (1515–78). It replaced a series of earlier buildings on the same site. After Catherine's death the hotel was enlarged and embellished. The last owner, Victor Amadeus I, Prince of Carignano, installed the Paris Bourse in the gardens, He was forced to sell it in 1740 to pay his debts. It was demolished in 1748 and the materials sold. A corn exchange was built on the site, later replaced by the present Bourse de commerce. A column, thought to have been used for astrological observations, is all that remains.

There was a hôtel on the site owned by Jean II de Nesle at the start of the 13th century. He had no heirs, and in 1232 ceded the property to king Louis IX of France (1214–70), who gave it to his mother Blanche of Castile (1188–1252) for use as her residence. King Philip IV of France (1268–1314), who inherited it, offered the hôtel to his brother Charles, Count of Valois (1270–1325). The property then passed to the latter's son, King Philip VI of France (1293–1350), who gave it to John of Bohemia (1296–1346), Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia. His daughter Bonne of Bohemia (1315–49) inherited the hôtel in 1327. She married the future King John II of France (1319–64). Their son, King Charles V of France (1338–80) ceded the building in 1354 to Amadeus VI, Count of Savoy (1334–83).

The hôtel then belonged to Louis I, Duke of Anjou (1339–84). His widow Marie of Blois (1345–1404) sold it in 1388 to King Charles VI of France (1368–1422), who gave it to his brother, the future King Louis XII of France (1462–1515). At the request of the confessor of King Charles VIII of France 1470–98), in 1498 Charles created a convent for "repentant girls", while the rest of the building was divided between the Constable of France and the Chancellor of the Duke of Orleans.