Nicolas François Mansart (1598 - 1666)

Born 13 Jan 1598 in Paris, France

Died 23 Sep 1666 at age 68 in Paris, France

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Biography

Nicolas François Mansart, the son of Absalon Mansart and Michelle Le Roy, was born at Paris in 1598. He passed away in 1666.

François Mansart was one of the best French architects of his age. The Encyclopædia Britannica describes him as the most accomplished of 17th-century French architects. He was a perfectionist whose classical and Baroque designs "are renowned for their high degree of refinement, subtlety, and elegance."

His buildings remain popular tourist attractions in Paris, especially among art students, and they include:

• The Chateau Maisons-Laffitte with its park,
• The church of Les Filles St. Marie in the rue St. Antoine
• The gate of the Church of the Feuillans, in the street of St. Honore
• The wing of Gaston d’Orléans at the castle of Blois,
• The Hôtels de Bouillon, Toulouse
• The Hôtel Carnavalet,
• A part of the Hôtel Conti, and
• The Val-de-Grâce (church) in the 5th arrondissement of Paris.

Mansart made extensive use of a four-sided, double slope gambrel roof punctuated with windows on the steeper lower slope, creating additional habitable space in the garrets that ultimately became named after him—the mansard roof.

Untrained in architecture, François learned most of his craftwork "on the job," while completing construction projects with his father, Absalon Mansart, a master carpenter.

A builder of great skill, Absalon Mansart served as a Valet du chambre to King Louis XIII, maintaining and repairing the royal family's chateaux, while also building any project required by the king. As Absalon's son and apprentice, François inherited the King's trust and respect.

Originally from Italy, the Mansart family had been serving French royalty since the 12th century. They were part of a tight-knit community of carpenters, masons and construction workers in Paris who had participated in the building of many churches and royal castles.

François grew up with two siblings: A brother, Jean Mansart, who married to Francoise Vielleton; and a sister, Marie, who married to Germain Gautier, the son of a wealthy family of architects who worked with the Mansart family on many projects.

Marie Mansart and Germain Gautier had a daughter, Marie Gautier, who married to Raphaël Hardouin and became the mother of Jules Hardouin (1646-1708) , a nephew to François Mansart who soon became François' most trusted apprentice and heir.

When François Mansart passed away in 1666, Jules took over the family architecture business and renamed himself Jules Hardouin-Mansart.

As first architect to King Louis XIV and the man who oversaw the building of the Palace of Versaille, Jules Hardouin-Mansart became one of the most important European architects of the 17th century, bringing even more honor to the Mansart name.

Sources

• "François Mansart" - Wikipedia
• Bauchal, Charles. Nouveau dictionnaire biographique et critique des architects français (Paris: Andre, Daly fils & Co., 1887). See Mansart (Nicolas-Francois) p. 395
• Chalmers, Alexander. The General Biographical Dictionary. (London: Nichols, Son & Bently, 1812). Vol. 21, p. 250
• DeWailly, Guillaume. "François Mansart (1598-1666)" profile and pedigree, la généalogie Wailly, Geneanet.
• Suzzallo, Henry et al. The National Cyclopedia (New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1932) Vol. 8, Renaissance Architecture, p. 423.

Find A Grave Memorial

Go to Website: Find A Grave Memorial No. 139989404

• Name: François Mansart
• Birth Date: 23 Jan 1598
• Death Date: 23 Sep 1666
• Cemetery: Cemetery of Saint Paul des Champs (Defunct)
• Burial or Cremation Place: Paris, City of Paris, Île-de-France, France
• Has Bio?: Y

Source Information

Ancestry.com. Global, Find A Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.

Original data: Find A Grave. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi.