Hospices de Beaune
Encyclopedia
Beaune
Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It was founded in 1443 by Nicolas Rolin
Nicolas Rolin
Nicolas Rolin was a leading figure in the history of Burgundy and France, becoming chancellor to Philip the Good .-Biography:...
, chancellor of Burgundy, as a hospital for the poor and needy. The original hospital building, the Hôtel-Dieu, one of the finest examples of French fifteenth-century architecture, is now a museum. Services for patients are now provided in modern hospital buildings.
An important charity wine auction
Wine auction
A wine auction is an auction devoted to wine, sometimes in combination with other alcoholic beverages. There are two basic types of wine auctions: first hand wine auctions, where wineries sell their own wines, and second hand wine auctions, arranged by auction houses or other auctioneers to make...
is held in November each year (formerly in the great hall of the Hôtel-Dieu).
History
The Hôtel-Dieu was founded on 4 August 1443, when BurgundyDuchy of Burgundy
The Duchy of Burgundy , was heir to an ancient and prestigious reputation and a large division of the lands of the Second Kingdom of Burgundy and in its own right was one of the geographically larger ducal territories in the emergence of Early Modern Europe from Medieval Europe.Even in that...
was ruled by Duke Philip the Good. The Hundred Years War had recently been brought to a close by the signing of the Treaty of Arras
Treaty of Arras
There have been several treaties of Arras:* the Treaty of Arras , between Charles VII of France and Philip the Good of Burgundy* the Treaty of Arras , between Louis XI of France and the governments of the Low Countries...
in 1435. Massacres, however, continued with marauding bands ("écorcheurs") still roaming the countryside, pillaging and destroying, provoking misery and famine. The majority of the people of Beaune
Beaune
Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France...
were declared destitute.
Nicolas Rolin
Nicolas Rolin was a leading figure in the history of Burgundy and France, becoming chancellor to Philip the Good .-Biography:...
, the Duke's Chancellor, and his wife Guigone de Salins, reacted by deciding to create a hospital and refuge for the poor.
The Hospices de Beaune received the first patient on 1 January 1452. Elderly, disabled and sick people, with orphans, women about to give birth and the destitute have all been uninterruptedly welcomed for treatment and refuge, from the Middle Ages until today.
Over the centuries, the hospital radiated outwards, grouping with similar establishments in the surrounding villages of Pommard
Pommard
Pommard is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in Bourgogne in eastern France.It is famous for its Côte de Beaune wine production. This beautiful village is situated directly south of Beaune along the Route des Grands Crus...
, Nolay
Nolay, Côte-d'Or
Nolay is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France.- Geography :Nolay is located in the heart of the Cozanne Valley. The town marks the transition between the forests and plains to the north and west and the hillside vineyards of the wealthy Burgundian wine regions surrounding Beaune...
, Meursault
Meursault
-See also:* Communes of the Côte-d'Or département* Route des Grands Crus* French wine-External links:* * In French.* * In French....
. Many donations - farms, property, woods, works of art and of course vineyards - were made to it, by grateful families and generous benefactors. The institution is one of the best and oldest example of historical, philanthropic, and wine-producing heritage, and has become linked with the economic and cultural life of Burgundy.
The courtyard
With a rectangular format, it is the best location to admire the different buildings amongst which three are decorated with a glazed-tile roof. This technique has probably its origins in Central EuropeCentral Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
(possibly from ceramics master Miklós Zsolnay of Pécs
Pécs
Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county...
, Hungary) but became quickly a landmark of the architecture from Burgundy (other glazed-tiled roofs could be observed in Dijon
Dijon
Dijon is a city in eastern France, the capital of the Côte-d'Or département and of the Burgundy region.Dijon is the historical capital of the region of Burgundy. Population : 151,576 within the city limits; 250,516 for the greater Dijon area....
for instance). These tiles have four colours (red, brown, yellow and green) with interlaced designs. The current tiles have been recreated between 1902 and 1907. The Northern, Eastearn and Western buildings include a two-level gallery with stone columns on the ground floor and wood beams on the first floor. Many dormer
Dormer
A dormer is a structural element of a building that protrudes from the plane of a sloping roof surface. Dormers are used, either in original construction or as later additions, to create usable space in the roof of a building by adding headroom and usually also by enabling addition of windows.Often...
and attic
Attic
An attic is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building . Attic is generally the American/Canadian reference to it...
windows can be observed with finely detailed wood and iron works. A well with gothic
Gothic art
Gothic art was a Medieval art movement that developed in France out of Romanesque art in the mid-12th century, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, but took over art more completely north of the Alps, never quite effacing more classical...
ironwork can also be seen in the centre of the courtyard.
Room of the Poors
The Room of the Poors measures 50x14x16 meters. On the ceiling, the visible painted frame is in an upside down boat-skiffSkiff
The term skiff is used for a number of essentially unrelated styles of small boat. The word is related to ship and has a complicated etymology: "skiff" comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of...
shape and in each beam are sculpted caricatures of some important Beaune
Beaune
Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France...
inhabitants. On the floor tiling are written Nicolas Rolin
Nicolas Rolin
Nicolas Rolin was a leading figure in the history of Burgundy and France, becoming chancellor to Philip the Good .-Biography:...
's monogram and his motto "Seulle" referring to his wife, Guigone de Salins.
The room is furnished with two rows of curtained beds. The central area was dedicated to benches and tables for the meals. The pieces of furniture have been brought together in 1875 by the son in law of the architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc
Eugène Viollet-le-Duc
Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc was a French architect and theorist, famous for his interpretive "restorations" of medieval buildings. Born in Paris, he was a major Gothic Revival architect.-Early years:...
. Each bed could welcome two patients.
The Chapel
The hospice possesses many artistic treasures, among them the mural paintings of the 17th century in the Salle St Hugues and an altarpiece
Altarpiece
An altarpiece is a picture or relief representing a religious subject and suspended in a frame behind the altar of a church. The altarpiece is often made up of two or more separate panels created using a technique known as panel painting. It is then called a diptych, triptych or polyptych for two,...
, the Last Judgment
The Last Judgment (Rogier van der Weyden)
The Last Judgment is a polyptych painted c. 1445–1450 by Rogier van der Weyden. The medium is oil on oak panel, though some panels have been transferred to canvas. It is in the collection of the Musée de l'Hôtel-Dieu, Beaune in France.-Description:...
, painted by Rogier van der Weyden.
Wine auction
The charity auction been arranged annually since 1851, taking place on the third Sunday in November amid a three day festival devoted to the food and wines of BurgundyBurgundy wine
Burgundy wine is wine made in the Burgundy region in eastern France, in the valleys and slopes west of the Saône River, a tributary of the Rhône. The most famous wines produced here - those commonly referred to as "Burgundies" - are red wines made from Pinot Noir grapes or white wines made from...
called Les Trois Glorieuses. The charity is preceded by a black tie dinner at the Clos de Vougeot on day one and followed by the lunch La Paulée de Meursault
La Paulée de Meursault
La Paulée de Meursault is a lunch celebrating the end of the grape harvest in Burgundy, France. Originally, the celebration included only winemakers, cellar workers, and the surrounding community...
on day three. The Domaine des Hospices de Beaune is a non-profit organisation which owns around 61 hectares (150.7 acre) of donated vineyard land, much of this classified Grand and Premier cru. With bidding by professional and private buyers, the barrels, from 31 cuvées of red wine and 13 of white wine, attain prices usually well in excess of the current commercial values, although the results give some indication of the trend in expected bulk wine prices for the vintage from the rest of the region.
The auction has been organised by Christie's
Christie's
Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.- History :The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766, and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766...
since 2005, setting a record total figure at the 149th auction in 2009 when 799 barrels were up for sale, and 40% bids by telephone, internet or fax connecting some 500 participants from around the world, the auction has in recent years evolved from a wholesale market to a retail market.