The palate Jacques Heart

“A valiant heart nothing impossible…”

The palate is in the old town of Bourges. 

It is made mention, under the palate, of an entry of an underground grid leading to the “room of holy water”. The other entries would be located under the Lallemand hotel and in the crypt of the cathedral…

Jacques Heart:

French businessman, it sent his vessels in almost all the parts of the world then known, and acquired in little time the most considerable fortune of Europe. He tied trade with the countries of Raising, Spain, Italy, and establishes counters in Avignon, Lyon, Limoges, Rouen, Paris and Bruges. Its activities were multiple (banks, changes, mines,)

Charles VII appointed it his banker (treasurer of its saving), the ennoblit. He entrusted several diplomatic missions to him, and had more once recourse to his purse: in 1448, Jacques Cœur lent 200.000 ecus of gold to him. He fills of the official loads (Master of the currencies in 1436, banker of the king in 1439, adviser of the king in 1442) and contributed to the cleansing of the currencies.

He made build a sumptuous palate in Bourges, as well as colleges in Paris, Montpellier and Bourges.

Jacques Heart being very jalousé for his great fortune, his enemies and his envieux managed to lose it. After the death of Agnes Sorel who protected it, Charles forgot his services and gave up it with the greed of the courtiers, who shared his skins.

Shown imaginary crimes, it is stopped for embezzlement and is condemned to death. It escapes in 1454, after 3 years of prison and is run away in Rome, the pope Calixte III giving him the command of part of the fleet which it had armed against the Turks. Jacques Cœur falls sick during the countryside, and dies in Chio, in 1456.

Its memory was rehabilitated by Louis XI. (Wikipédia)

Jacques Cœur had set up an important organization for the construction of his palate:

The control of work is ensured by two “men him”, Pierre Jobert and Jacquelin Collet, helped from 1447 of Guillot Trépan.

The control of work is carried out by people of experiment who had worked with the construction of the palate of the duke Jean de Berry. It is in the mobility of Beauneuveu and Dammartin that this building site is held, but the right man for the job is Colin the Picardy one, “Master of works of the king”, it lives in Bourges since 1413.

For the frames, very important, the person in charge names Jean of Blois.

Wood will come from the forest of Blois, but also from Aubigny, whereas the stones, in a traditional way in Bourges come from Vallenay, Saint Florent and of course of Charly for the carved stones.

For the decoration part, sculpture or héraldite, there is not a doubt that Jacques Coeur took part in certain choices. http://jacques-coeur.bourges.net/le%20palais%20Jacques%20Coeur.htm

Many works were published on the symbolic system alchemist of the palate, in particular the book of Fulcanelli. I do not know large thing of large-work. I let myself carry by my felt for the various photographs which I could take. I remembered vaguely that the snail belonged to the symbols, and that the palate had a sculpture of an alchemist… I believe that I had it…