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Jean-Michel Chevotet

French architect (1698-1772)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMar 9, 2026
Entity authorityQ749712 ↗
Source-derived summary

Jean-Michel Chevotet (11 July 1698, Paris – 4 December 1772) was a French architect. He and Pierre Contant d'Ivry were among the most eminent Parisian architects of the day and designed in both the restrained French Rococo manner, known as the "Louis XV style" and in the "Goût grec" (literally "Greek taste") phase of early Neoclassicism. His grandson was Pierre-Jean-Baptiste Chaussard.

Life

In 1722, Chevotet won the Académie royale d'architecture's very first Prix de Rome with a study of a triumphal arch. A skilled draughtsman, he illustrated several architectural treatises, such as Jean-Baptiste de Monicart's "Versailles immortalisé" (1720–1725) and Jean Mariette's "L’Architecture française" (1727). On the death of Germain Boffrand in 1754, he became a member of the first rank of the Academie.

He and d'Ivray were tutors to Claude Nicolas Ledoux, whom they introduced to Classical architecture, in particular the temples of Paestum.

In 1748 and 1753, he unsuccessfully submitted 4 projects for the future Place Louis XV (now Place de la Concorde), and in 1764 was not commissioned for the extension of the Palais Bourbon.

Works

Hôtels

He was more successful in establishing his reputation through his aristocratic clientele and adapted many existing Parisian hôtels to the modern taste, notably working on:

hôtel Molé (also called hôtel de Roquelaure) (1741–1742), rue Saint-Dominique (today 246 boulevard Saint-Germain)

hôtel de Béthune-Sully (also called hôtel de Lesdiguières) (1756–1757), rue Saint-Dominique (today 248 boulevard Saint-Germain)

Hôtel Perrinet de Jars, 33 rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré

the Pavillon de Hanovre for Louis François Armand du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, Marshal of France, commemorating his victories in Hanover, on rue Neuve-Saint-Augustin (deconstructed for the construction of the Palais Berlitz on the boulevard des Italiens, and rebuilt in 1932 in the park of the Château de Sceaux)

Country houses and gardens

He also built country houses around Paris, notably:

the house and gardens of château de Champlâtreux (1751–1757) for Mathieu-François Molé, president of the Great Council, also designing the gardens

the house of Château d'Arnouville at Arnouville-lès-Gonesse (1751–57), for Jean-Baptiste de Machault d'Arnouville, president of the Great Council, collaborating with d'Ivry

the neo-classical house and gardens of Château de Petit-Bourg at Évry (1756) for Germain Louis Chauvelin, president of the Great Council, destroyed 1944

the gardens at Belœil (1754 and 1760) for princes Claude Lamoral de Ligne and Charles-Joseph de Ligne

the gardens at Orsay (1758–1764) for Pierre Gaspard Marie Grimod d'Orsay.

He may also have worked on the modernisation of the Château of Thoiry (Yvelines).

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Jean-Michel Chevotet” as french architect (1698-1772). Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA useful biographical orientation record, particularly for establishing names, roles and a first chronology. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1698, 1772, 1722, 1720—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1698-07-11. The account is most persuasive where Jean-Michel, Chevotet and French can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the people & ideas register because the source frames it as french architect (1698-1772). Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q749712. VIAF identifies the subject as 51960331. The Library of Congress control number is n86050674. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1698, 1772, 1722 and 1720.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Jean-Michel Chevotet” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.