This historical asset in the heart of La Rochelle is listed by the town council on an online auction platform. THE SALE. The La Rochelle oratory is over 2400m² and has two access points: one of rue Albert the other on rue de College, basically in the middle of town. For historical reasons, the Oratory hall and adjacent halls are not part of this sale. “It’s the most emblematic property on the La Rochelle market today.” It has the potential for investor projects that could really benefit the town.” Highlights Zacharie Grumberg, Property Development Manager at Agorastore who’s in charge of the file. The council has indicated that in addition to a quality project, the aim for La Rochelle is to increase social diversity in the social housing for the protected sector. So, it would be important for potential buyers to think about quality renovation for the whole of the asset. In the immediate vicinity of Place de Verdun, the property is located in a very dynamic, strategic location. Property prices in La Rochelle have increased by 2.6% between 2018 and 2019 and more than 20% in the last ten years. A LITTLE HISTORY…The room that’s called the Oratory today has undergone many changes over the course of time. First, it served as a chapel for the convent ‘Soeurs blanches de Sainte-Marguerite’ (15th-century door onto rue du College), it was abandoned by the nuns during religious unrest. The building was then used as a hospital for the wounded during the siege of 1573, then as an artillery store. The Catholics then occupied a part of it during periods where they were authorised to celebrate mass in the village. In 1567, the Church Congress for the Saintonge, Aunis and Angoumis regions held the church and it was returned to the Catholics according to the Edict of Nantes. The congregation of the Oratory took their place and built new buildings there. When political and religious troubles started after the death of Henry IV, the ‘Oratorians’ were expelled from the town and protestant preachers took over Sainte-Marguerite in 1621. This was the church where Richelieu solemnly celebrated masse after the surrender of La Rochelle in 1628.