A vaulted ground floor flat overlooking the main courtyard in a listed 16th century abbey in Châlons-en-Champagne - ref 651301
A vaulted ground floor flat overlooking the main courtyard in a listed 16th century abbey in Châlons-en-Champagne.
185 km from Paris on the A4 motorway, 1 hour by TGV train, in the heart of Châlons-en-Champagne, a town full of art and history with 45 000 inhabitants. The town has preserved the soul of its stonework and the charm of its half-timbered houses. It is nicknamed "Sparkling Venice" because of its champagne. Boat trips on the Mau and Nau rivers, which meander through the old town, give you a chance to admire its remarkable architectural heritage. The town is home to the Centre National des Arts du Cirque, which regularly stages spectacular shows. Pierre Dac, a native of the region, would have been proud to see that this art form is now considered an integral part of Champagne's heritage. The abbey is a five-minute walk from the station, in the town centre with its cafés and restaurants (including a few good restaurants), the Bartholdi Halles (three markets a week), the theatre, its three museums and its ultra-modern library.
The former Toussaints Abbey, located on the edge of the historic centre, is flanked by the Place de l'Ecole des Arts and the Quai des Gaaz Arts. Part of the Order of Canons Regular of Saint Augustine, it was officially founded in 1062 on an island in the Marne on the edge of the town. It was razed to the ground in 1544 to prevent Charles V's troops from entrenching themselves there. Abbot Claude Godet then acquired a plot of land within the city walls to move his establishment there, and construction began in 1545. The congregation was dispersed in 1789, and the buildings became barracks, followed in 1790 by the Royal Artillery School, which remained there until 1803. From 1806 onwards, the building was used by Arts et Métiers students until 1861, when the Department acquired the buildings to establish the École normale d'instituteurs (primary school teacher training school). A major restoration campaign began in 2006 to create 34 flats with private parking spaces. The facades and roofs are listed as Historic Monuments. Built of chalk, on two floors set under slate roofs with stone dormer windows, the former abbey is made up of three angled wings forming a U shape with a large courtyard that opens onto the Place de l'Ecole des Arts through a stone porch bearing the inscription "Ecole Normale Primaire" and topped by a richly carved triangular pediment. The flat is on the ground floor, to the left of the former chapter house, which still has its stained glass windows and is topped by a slightly projecting porch with columns and a triangular pediment sculpted with a salamander, the emblem of François the First.
The 145m2 flat From the terrace, the entrance is either directly from the private parking spaces outside the building or via the courtyard into a hall containing cupboards. The entrance opens onto a fitted kitchen and a vast, rib-vaulted living room measuring approximately 69 m2 with a central column with a capital and terracotta floor tiles covering the entire flat. A study with cupboards follows and connects with the two bedrooms, the toilet and the bathroom with a washbasin, bath and shower.
