Rohan Palace: A French Baroque Masterpiece

In this installment of ‘Larger Than Life: Architecture Through the Ages,’ we visit a notable example of Baroque residential architecture outside of Paris.

An aerial view of the Rohan Palace in Strasbourg shows the Parisian-style, hôtel particulier design with a walled courtyard. What appears to be the palace's main doorway is the courtyard entrance through a pavilion on the street. The palace is primarily built with yellow sandstone from Wasselonne, a town in Bas-Rhin, France, and pink sandstone is used for the less visible architectural elements. PhotoFires/Shutterstock

Rohan Palace is among the most important works of French Baroque architecture. Idyllically located beside the cathedral in Strasbourg, France, the palace began as a new home for the city’s bishops.

In 1727, Cardinal Armand de Rohan, (who was also the Prince-Bishop of Strasbourg and a member of the House of Roh), commissioned architect Robert de Cotte to design the new palace in the French Baroque style. De Cotte started his education as a student of Jules Hardouin-Mansart—the primary architect of Versailles—before becoming his junior partner and eventual successor as chief royal architect.

The construction of Rohan Palace extended from 1732 to 1742 and was largely directed by the younger architect Joseph Massol, who assisted de Cotte in designing the palace and was put in charge after de Cotte’s death in 1735. The palace’s design was inspired by the era’s Parisian residential style known as hôtel particulier, or grand urban mansion. While it often incorporated French Baroque elements such as colossal orders (multi-story columns), residential architecture phased out the colonnades and cupolas for a lighter style that introduced wrought iron decoration in rocaille designs (organic, undulating curves).

In the 1730s, the Episcopal Palace was handed from the nobility to the state. It’s now a cultural landmark that houses three museums: the Archaeological Museum, the Fine Arts Museum, and the Decorative Arts Museum.

The palace’s main entrance is situated in the northern side of the building, opposite the Strasbourg Cathedral. While the triumphal arched gateway is reminiscent of classical Roman architecture, the concave wall is a distinctive feature in Baroque designs. The palace’s sculptures and reliefs were carved by Robert Le Lorrain, one of the greatest French Baroque sculptors. Sculptural allegories of faith and personifications of "Religion," "Eucharist," "Mercy," and "Penance" crown the main portal. PhotoFires/Shutterstock

Rohan Palace’s library is part of the Museum of Decorative Arts. Located on the ground floor, the library also serves as the nave of the palace's small chapel. Hanging above the mahogany bookshelves are four of the eight tapestries depicting "The History of Constantine," which were woven around 1624 from designs by artists Peter Paul Rubens and Pietro da Cortona (extant in several editions). Flanking the doorway are two of the library’s paintings of the four evangelists. kamienczanka/Shutterstock

The King’s Bedroom, where French monarchs and the royal family visitors (including Louis XV, Marie Antoinette, Napoleon, Joséphine, and Charles X) to Strasbourg stayed, is one of the most ornate and impressive rooms in Rohan Palace. With fluted columns, ornamental gilding, tassel chandeliers, and balustrade—a low railing separating the bed from the rest of the room—the king’s bedroom exemplifies the full splendor of late Baroque interior aesthetics. The decor is further enhanced by large, gilded mirrors and three of the tapestries from the “History of Constantine” series. (Morio60/CC BY-SA 2.0)

Synod Hall was used as a reception area and a dining room. Inside the arcade arches are sculpted representations of musical instruments, since banquets were commonly accompanied by music. Above the central sideboard is a trompe-l’oeil (trick of the eye) mural of Ceres, goddess of agriculture and fertility. Alexander Sorokopud/Shutterstock

The prince-bishop's bedchamber later became Emperor Napoleon’s Morning Room (a living room that receives the morning sun). With a combination of lavishness and gentility typical of a private Baroque room, the furniture includes a Canape Confident (a sofa having end seats at right angles to the main seats), six armchairs, and two candle stands. Alexander Sorokopud/Shutterstock

The southern façade occupies the entire width of the Rohan Palace lot and has four floors, including the mansard roof. It features 17 bays (regularly spaced windows), wrought-iron balconies, and four Corinthian columns crowned with a pediment displaying the House of Rohan's coat of arms. Mikhail Markovskiy/Shutterstock

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