An elegant 19th-century dwelling and its wooded grounds, 20 minutes from Dax and near beaches, in the Chalosse region - ref 174277
An elegant 19th-century dwelling and its wooded grounds, 20 minutes from Dax and near beaches, in the Chalosse region.
Only twenty minutes from Dax and its high-speed rail station, as well as 45 minutes from the nearest beaches, the family property, built in the 1800s, is nestled in a verdant setting within the greater Chalosse region, an agricultural area in the south of the Landes department featuring hillsides, pastures and farmland, whereas, two minutes away, a nearby village, famous for its thermal waters, belongs to Dax's area of influence, the first French thermal hub, which contains services, shops and transportation infrastructures.
Inhabited year-round, the rural environment is scattered with dwellings connected by a network of small roads, while the Landes department's beaches are accessible in less than one hour. In addition, the countryside provides an open landscape, quite different from the forests in the north of the department.
Hidden towards the back of its wooded grounds, of approximately 1.5 hectares and accessible via a wide drive, this elegant three-storey dwelling features nearly 700 m² of inhabitable floor area. Meticulously maintained and partially renovated in 2012, it has preserved many of its original details: crown moulding, original doors, staircase, parquet, stone or terracotta tile floors, while the dwelling's central and oldest section is composed of a square structure that dates from 1844 and was in all likelihood built over the foundations of a building from the late 17th century.
As for its three-storey façade, featuring light-colour plaster, it is topped with a gently sloping tile roof and is symmetrically cadenced by vertical rows of tall, rectangular, small-paned windows, whereas, in the middle, its wooden front door, surrounded by a moulded frame and topped with sculpted décor, acts as the façade's main focal point. In addition, slightly protruding quoins and horizontal stringcourses structure the exterior, while two cypresses, planted to the right of the building, add to the enchanting views.
To the west, the "new pavilion", built in 1863 and facing the Pyrenees, as was customary in the Second Empire, is topped with a long slate Mansard roof, whereas its two-storey façade, in light-colour plaster, is organised symmetrically into four vertical rows of rectangular windows, safeguarded by shutters. On the ground floor, two pairs of glass doors flank similar-size windows, while, upstairs, the windows are aligned with their lower counterparts. Lastly, a horizontal stringcourse marks the separation between the different levels, whereas a central decorative motif highlights the façade's upper section.
The ChateauThe large edifice is commonly known as the "chateau", as is custom in the Landes department, even though it never belonged to a lordship.
The ground floor
The chateau is laid out around an immense entrance hall, which provides access to three living rooms: the largest, with a little less than 60 m² and featuring a fireplace, gives on to the patio and enjoys breath-taking views of the Pyrenees. Painted wooden double doors, topped with an arched fanlight with radiating spokes, separate the living room from the dining room, featuring a fireplace and facing south and west, while an initial kitchen boasts a stone fireplace, topped with a wooden beam, as well as doors painted green.
With original terracotta tile floors in the older part of the chateau and pale travertine-type stone tile floors for its more recent section, directly opposite, in the older part of the dwelling, there is a second fitted kitchen with a glass door in the back and a more linear layout, as well as a self-contained flat, located on one side of the dwelling.
The first floor
At the top of a wooden staircase, typical to the region, the sleeping quarters are divided into ...
