Hôtel d'Avelin, Neoclassical private mansion in Lille, France.

Hôtel d'Avelin stands at 22 rue Saint-Jacques in Lille, on the corner of rue des Jardins facing Place aux Bleuets. Its neoclassical courtyard facade is deliberately plain, with floors marked only by a cornice; the entrance door sits in a central projection framed by two columns and topped by a narrow balcony. The building has a single wing, on the left of the courtyard, with a long balcony carried on columns. A monumental gate with two Doric columns and large half-relief vases leads into the cour d'honneur, flanked by two pavilions linked by grilles.

Michel-Joseph Lequeux, then a young architect, drew the plans in 1775 for François Augustin Anne Hubert Colette, marquis d'Hangouart and last count of Avelin, and demolished the old Hangouart townhouse to erect the present building in 1777. Lequeux took the hôtel Saint-Florentin by Chalgrin as a model, making this the first neoclassical mansion in Lille. Confiscated and sold as national property during the Revolution, it was bought by Louis Marie Joseph de Brigode, mayor of Lille, who hosted Louis XVIII there on the night of 22 to 23 March 1815 as the king fled to Ghent.

The mansion reflects how wealthy families in 18th-century Lille displayed their status through architecture and interior space. The grand entrance portico and formal courtyard layout show the social customs and taste of the period's elite residents.

The mansion is located in Lille's old town near other landmarks and is clearly visible from the street. Visitors should check ahead for access information, as public visits to the building may have specific hours or require prior arrangement.

The 900 m² figure in the sources refers to the interior of the mansion, not to a garden. The rear facade, framed by two small pentagonal wings added in 1925, looks onto a large garden. The building itself has only one wing, on the left of the courtyard, marked by a long balcony carried on columns.