Gaillac, Midi-Pyrénées 81600

A townhouse with a neo-Gothic chapel and walled garden, facing the River Tarn and abbey gardens in the town of Gaillac in south-west France. You reach the property from three roads in the historical centre of Gaillac. The whole plot covers 1,200m², widely built upon at its edges. Its different buildings, joined together over the years, are arranged around a walled garden and enjoy absolute privacy. A majestic cedar and the brick belltower of the property's chapel look down at this secret garden. The main house, the chapel and the other buildings together form a dense, uneven collection, which is characteristic of old urban development. The constructions are mainly made of Toulouse brick, which is rendered in places. They are crowned with barrel-tile roofs with two or more slopes. From the street, the main house displays an organised facade with three levels, punctuated with rectangular and arched openings, as well as brick stringcourses and wrought-iron guardrails. On the garden side, the walls are less even and reflect the different building periods. The chapel stands out for its higher reach, its hipped roofing and its small brick-and-stone belltower crowned with a cross. The main house has a ground floor, a first floor and a second floor in the roof space. It offers a vast reception room with a fireplace, as well as a kitchen, six bedrooms, two offices and several bathrooms or shower rooms. In addition to these rooms for everyday living, there are loft spaces and a lower level of cellars and storerooms, which face the street. This whole lower level could be converted to become an extra dwelling. A building linked to the main house brings together a ground-floor chapel and a first-floor billiard room. A self-contained apartment with a bedroom completes the whole series of built sections. Several staircases and separate entrance doors open up the possibility of communal or private uses of the different parts.