Hôtel de Chazerat (Clermont-Ferrand)

Hôtel de Chazerat stands on the eastern slope of Clermont-Ferrand's cathedral hill as one of the city's finest Louis XVI-style townhouses, at 4 rue Pascal.

Where exactly is it located?

The mansion sits in the historic heart of Clermont-Ferrand, a short walk from the Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption cathedral. Its plot previously held another townhouse, the Hôtel de Ribeyre, which had burned down. Because the site slopes down the hill, the builders had to work around uneven ground, a constraint still visible in how the courtyard and wings are arranged.

When was it built, and by whom?

Construction ran from 1760 to 1769 for Charles-Antoine-Claude de Chazerat, who went on to serve as intendant of Auvergne. Three teams of architects succeeded one another on the project: Pierre Peyrat and Ricart handled the first phase between 1760 and 1764, Fournier took over from 1764 to 1766, and Antoine Deval completed the work afterward. That succession of builders explains why some interior details diverge stylistically even though the exterior reads as a unified classical composition.

What can visitors see on the grounds?

An oval courtyard of honor, lined with Ionic-capital columns, forms the centerpiece of the layout — an unusual choice for a provincial townhouse of this era. From the courtyard, a circular vestibule decorated with paintings opens onto the main reception room. That salon carries four plaster medallions depicting the four seasons, copied from motifs Edmé Bouchardon created for Paris's Fountain of the Four Seasons between 1739 and 1745. Finding that specific Parisian sculptural reference reproduced in an Auvergne mansion is unusual and worth pausing for.

How has the building's role changed over time?

The mansion's later history tracks France's own upheavals. Once the Chazerat family emigrated during the Revolution, the property was sold as national land, and the city of Clermont used it to house municipal offices. Antoine de Chazerat won the house back in 1806 and kept it until he died in 1824. It then passed to the bishopric, which held it until the law separating church and state took effect. During the First World War, the building operated as a hospital; afterward and until 1937, it housed the university's faculty of letters, before that faculty relocated to avenue Carnot. The tax administration moved in next.

What is it used for today?

Today the mansion houses Auvergne's Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC), pairing an administrative role with its status as a protected historic monument. The facade and courtyard remain visible from the street even outside office hours, making the building a worthwhile stop on a walk through old Clermont-Ferrand.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can visitors go inside Hôtel de Chazerat? Since the building serves as a regional government office, interior access is limited to working hours and occasional public events, though the facade and the oval courtyard of honor can be viewed from outside at any time.

What are the opening hours? On weekdays the building is open from morning through evening with a midday break (Tuesday to Friday, roughly 10:00–12:15 and 15:00–20:00), Monday afternoons only, and shorter morning and afternoon slots on Saturday — checking the current schedule before visiting is worthwhile.

Why does the courtyard have an oval shape? Oval courtyards were a favored device in eighteenth-century classical townhouses, since the curve gave the entrance a grander feel and made a modest, sloped plot appear more spacious.

Where does the name Chazerat come from? It comes from the family that commissioned the mansion — Charles-Antoine-Claude de Chazerat, later intendant of Auvergne, financed and drove the 1760-1769 construction.