The Billex house

The Billex house takes its name from Hans Billex, who owned the house in the early 17th century and had it rebuilt (or remodelled) in 1615, as the inscription on the door lintel indicates. The Billex house can be considered one of the last large houses built during the Renaissance in Sélestat. The door frame is characteristic, with its fluted pilasters, capitals, ove decorations and broken pediment. The oriel window on the façade is also worthy of note. An inscription on the oriel refers to the passage of Louis XIV.
 

Louis XIV in Sélestat

A large part of Alsace became French under the Treaties of Westphalia in 1648. However, Strasbourg did not surrender to Louis XIV until 1681, on 30 September. All of Alsace now belonged to France, with the exception of the town of Mulhouse, which decided to join the French Republic in 1798.

On 13 October 1681, Louis XIV came to Sélestat to meet the Magistrate of Strasbourg, who had come to make an act of submission. Here is what historian A. Dorlan about this event: "The king arrived in Schlestadt on 13 October, via the valley of Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines. He was accompanied by the Queen, the Grand-Dauphin and his wife, the Duke and Duchess of Orléans, the Prince of Conti and a large retinue that could barely fit into 400 carriages and countless horses and mules. [...] After crossing the city between a double hedge of soldiers, who were struggling to contain the huge crowd of people who had come from all around, he went down to the Hôtel Sainct-Lo. This hotel consisted of the old Klein-Giessen house, which had been acquired in the early years of the French occupation by a commissioner of war, Jean Sainct-Lô... It was, one might say, the most modern house in Sélestat, and therefore the most affordable. Louvois had stayed there in 1679, when he came to lay the foundation stone for the Strasbourg gateway and, as a skilful oven-keeper, was able to extol its advantages to the king".

Louis XIV spent the night in the Billex house. The next day, he met the Strasbourg magistrate, then visited the Jesuit convent and attended mass at Sainte Foy. In the afternoon, he inspected the city's fortifications in the company of Louvois.

 

The Saint-Lô mansion

We can't talk about the Billex house without mentioning its neighbour, the Saint-Lô mansion. Dating back to 1574, the Saint-Lô mansion features a front façade preceded by three large arcades supporting a balcony with a wrought-iron balustrade.

In the early 17th century, the mansion underwent a number of alterations typical of the Alsatian Renaissance, when it was purchased in 1649 by Jean Saint Lô, then Commissioner of Wars, who was garrisoned in Sélestat. The same year, he bought the Billex house. It was at this time that the staircase turret was built, linking the Billex house and the Saint-Lô mansion and providing a link between the two buildings. The spiral staircase, which is typical of the Renaissance period, bears numerous stain marks. As was customary at the time, the turret window frames follow the slope of the staircase.