The Palace

Ici au Palais des Comtes de Poitou – Ducs d’Aquitaines, plus communément appelé Le Palais, se sont succédés différents exercices du pouvoir, peut-être dès l’Antiquité, plus sûrement à partir du Haut Moyen-Âge.

Indeed, the name Maubergeon (which still qualifies the medieval keep) is derived from the "mall-berg", the former Merovingian court.

Shortly after the year 1000, a new palace was built on a mound of earth, leaning against the ancient rampart and completed around 1100 by a first tower (the remains of which can be seen in the Jeanne d'Arc square). The complex, surrounded by ditches, was the residence of the counts of Poitou-ducs d'Aquitaine.

The great ceremonial hall was rebuilt by the Plantagenêt family a little before 1200; known as the "Salle des Pas Perdus", with its vast dimensions and its decoration in the Angevin style (blind arches, capitals), it is the official hall of the Palace and remains today one of the most remarkable examples of medieval civil architecture in France.

From the 13th century onwards, the palace became less and less residential, to the benefit of its administrative functions. It underwent new developments around 1380, at the instigation of Jean de Berry: the Maubergeon tower was rebuilt, private apartments (which have now disappeared) were built to the east, a new gable wall enclosed the great hall, pierced by wide windows above monumental sculpted fireplaces. The ensemble heralded the flamboyant Gothic style.

After the French Revolution, the former count's palace was definitively converted into a courthouse until 2019.

Since January 1, 2020, the City of Poitiers is the owner of the Palais. This is a great opportunity to imagine a new city center around the Palace, through new uses and new traffic habits.

In order for the inhabitants and tourists to appropriate this place, many animations are proposed.