The neighbourhood of the hotel is in the oldest sections of Paris, built between the 6th and 10th centuries. This area, originally wet land, was first drained, then cultivated, and finally developed and integrated to the rest of the city behind Philippe Auguste’s first wall. Several monasteries were then established, as well as a very active harbour. The protection of the walled city was undertaken up-stream by Le Louvre (on the right bank), and by the famous Nesles Tower, located, before its demolition, at the end of the current Conti Pier. A chain was pulled between the two banks in order to protect the city during the night and during attacks.
In its current form, the neighbourhood is the result of deep transformations that took place between the 16th and the 18th centuries, which, among others, include the realisation of:

The “Hôtel de la Monnaie”. This building, which occupies a large part of the block between Guénégaud Street and the “Institut de France”, is the product of three different periods. First, in 1572, Louis de Gonzague, Prince of Nevers, erected the first part of the building, which was modified in 1641 by the architect Mansart, who was commissioned by Henri de Guénégaud, Count of Montbrisson, the disgraced former Keeper of the Seals of Louis XIV. Guénégaud Street was created as part of the renovation of the “Hôtel de Guénégaud”. The Princess of Conti acquired the hôtel in 1670, and moved in when she was left a widow by the death of Armand de Bourbon, the Prince of Conti, direct descendant of Henri IV.

The “Institut de France”. The Institute, whose the left wing was built on the site of the Nesles Tower, opened in 1688. Funded by a foundation created by Cardinal Mazarin, this institution, then known as the College of the Four Nations, was dedicated to sixty students chosen from four provinces acquired by France under the governance of Mazarin: Piemont, Alsace, Artois and Rousillon. As with many other Parisian monuments, the purpose of the building was modified during the French Revolution, and it is only in 1806, that it assumes its current function, hosting prestigious institutions and academies: Institut de France, Académie Française, Académie des Inscriptions et des Belles Lettres, Académie des Sciences, Académie des Beaux-Arts, Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques.

However, signs of an even older past remain:

The Saint-Germain des Prés Church is a vestige of the Saint-Germain des Prés abbey, one of the main sites of the Benedictine order at the time, order which owned a very large property in what is known today as the Faubourg Saint-Germain. The church itself is one of the oldest in Paris. In 542, a monastery had been built in this site in order to house the relics of the King of France Chilibert, son of Clovis. This first building was devastated four times by attacks by the Normans. The center of the current building was built between 990 and 1021, and several extensions have been added since then.

The “Ile de la Cité”, the cradle of Paris (where the Parisii, ordinary fishermen, had established their huts around 250 before Christ), was named Lutetia during the Roman era. During the 19th century, reigns of Louis Philippe and Napoléon III, the island was substantially restructured. Consequently, a large number of ancient houses disappeared. However, an impressive number of major structures dating as far back as antiquity, have been conserved: the Sainte-Chapelle (12th-13th centuries), Notre-Dame Cathedral (12th-14th centuries), the “Consiergerie” (parts from the 14th century), Pont-Neuf Bridge (end of 16th century).

The name of some streets. The name of “Grands Augustins” Street, for instance, comes from a convent, built in 1261 by King Saint-Louis for the Brothers of the Penitence of Christ or “Sacks” (because of the sack-like shape of their attire) who were later replaced by the religious order of the hermits of Saint-Augustin.