Rue des Forges
A medieval street of merchants' mansions behind the Palace of the Dukes, with a Gothic courtyard hidden at No. 34.
- Heritage site
- 44 min from Beaune
- Allow 30 to 45 minutes
- UNESCO World Heritage
€120one way from Beaune with a private driver
At a glance
- Where
- Dijon · Côte-d'Or
- Official website
- destinationdijon.com
Getting there
Private driver from Beaune: 44 min by road (48 km), €120 one way for the whole car.
Or add it to our full-day wine tour, €560.
Coming by train or plane? Transfers from stations and airports →
About the place
Rue des Forges runs behind the Palace of the Dukes, from Place des Ducs past Place Notre-Dame to Place François-Rude. It keeps a rare row of rich merchants' houses from the 13th to the 16th century. Behind the door of No. 34 lies the courtyard of the Hôtel Chambellan, a jewel of Flamboyant Gothic.
What you will see
Walk the street slowly and look up. The arcaded windows of the Hôtel Aubriot, the lion masks, garlands and vases of the Maison Milsand and the old shop arches of the Hôtel Morel-Sauvegrain stand side by side. At No. 34, a long vaulted passage leads into the Chambellan courtyard, with a two-storey wooden gallery and a stair tower. At the top of its spiral staircase, a carved figure known as the gardener carries a basket on his shoulder, and the ribs of the vault seem to spring out of it.
History
The Hôtel Chambellan was built in the second half of the 15th century for a family of wealthy cloth merchants. Henri Chambellan, a draper, was mayor of Dijon from 1490 to 1493 and later sat on the Chamber of Accounts. The house was classified as a historic monument in 1913, and its chapel in 1917. The city owned it from 1913 until 2008, when it was sold to a private owner, and it was restored in 2018.
The neighbouring houses tell more of the street's story. No. 38, the Maison Maillard, also called Maison Milsand, was built in 1561 for Jean Maillard, then mayor, and its carved upper facade is attributed to the cabinetmaker and architect Hugues Sambin. No. 40, the Hôtel Aubriot, keeps a 13th-century facade with paired round arches, restored in 1908. Further on, the Hôtel Morel-Sauvegrain at Nos. 52 to 56 dates from around 1475.
Planning your visit
Tips for your visit
The street is pedestrian and can be walked at any time. Allow 30 to 45 minutes. The Hôtel Chambellan is private: the tourist office asks visitors to respect the owners' privacy and not to push the doors, so the courtyard can only be seen when it is open. The Dijon tourist office is at No. 11, which makes the street a natural start for the Owl's Trail. Place de la Libération and the owl of Notre-Dame are a few minutes away.
Around here
What to combine with Rue des Forges on the same day, nearest first.
Dijon
1 km awayMarsannay-la-Côte
7 km awayFixin
10 km away
- Christmas
Les Fééries de Noël de Dijon
Usually from the last Saturday of November to the first Sunday of JanuaryDijon - Tradition
Fête de la Pressée
Usually the third weekend of September, during the European Heritage DaysChenôve
Questions
Rue des Forges is about 44 min from Beaune by road (48 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €120 for the whole car, up to 4 guests.
Did you know? Hugues Aubriot, born around 1320 in the house at No. 40, became provost of Paris under Charles V and laid the first stone of the Bastille on 22 April 1370.
Sources
Rue des Forges with a private driver
€120 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests