Esquirol: a 16th century monument

 

Esquirol is a 16th century house. According to a Bordeaux University tree-ring study, the house was built in what were Elizabethan times in England. The wood was cut sometime between 1553 and 1580 and the house then built in a style unique to the region known as houses with piled beams -- 'Maisons à empilage de poutres' in French. Large 10-metre long weathered oak beams from trees over 100 years old were piled on top of each other. The house also has Tudor-style half-timbering on the first floor: this would have been much easier to construct than the ground floor but is thought to be contemporary with it. The house was listed as a national monument in 1991.
 
The origin of this kind of building is a matter for speculation. It could have been a defensive structure just before or during the French Wars of Religion which began in 1569 after a period of calm, or alternatively a cabin used during forest clearances. Given that further examples have been found outside the wooded zone of the department it has more recently been suggested that it could have been a residence for the nobility.
 
In the last century, the house was part of a farm and the recently restored ground floor was in use as a cellar for wine-making and probably also as a home for farm animals. The restoration was completed in 2007.
 
The gite was constructed 2002-3 from a lean-to area previously serving as a garage and containing the front of an old prune oven.
 
The name 'Esquirol'
 
1) It means 'squirrel' in Catalan. Squirrel in French is 'écureuil'.
 
2) Doctor Jean-Etienne Esquirol (1772-1840) was born in Toulouse and became a famous psychiatrist. As chief doctor at the Salpetriere Hospital in Paris, he was the first to insist that the criminally insane should be treated as suffering from a disease. Several hospitals and clinics in France use his surname and Toulouse and Agen now have popular Esquirol squares. However, our house is not an asylum, but is located in a place of calm and beauty.
 
3) In Spanish, 'esquirol' means a scab or blackleg. So we will leave this discussion at that.