Jean Cocteau House, Historic villa in Milly-la-Forêt, France
The Jean Cocteau House is a 16th-century Louis XIII-style dwelling in Milly-la-Forêt, built as a twelve-room clerical residence attached to the 13th-century Château de Milly-la-Forêt. Its street facade has a round brick-and-stone turret, a tall shuttered window above a stone plaque, and a wide arched doorway. Inside, the grand salon, bedroom and study are kept as Cocteau left them.
The building dates from the 16th century and was originally part of a castle complex from the 13th century. Cocteau moved here around 1947 and made it his permanent home and workspace until his death in 1963.
The house keeps the name "Maison du Bailli", from its past as a dependency of the old Henri IV presbytery of the Château de Milly-la-Forêt. Cocteau's tomb in the nearby chapel Saint-Blaise-des-Simples, which he decorated from 1959 with murals of medicinal plants, carries the inscription "Je reste avec vous".
The house is furnished with original items and can be toured through its rooms to see how Cocteau lived there. The residence is compact and easy to navigate, so a visit does not require a lot of time.
In 1955 Cocteau kept a box of 680 pastels in the attic studio, a Christmas gift from his friend Francine Weisweiller. There he also made tapestry cartoons for the Aubusson manufactory, turning the former grenier into a working summer atelier.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,784 contributors worldwide.
