The last owner, Victor Amadeus I, Prince of Carignano, installed the Paris Bourse in the gardens, He was forced to sell it in 1740 to pay his debts.

He had no heirs, and in 1232 ceded the property to king Louis IX of France (1214–70), who gave it to his mother Blanche of Castile (1188–1252) for use as her residence.

[citation needed] In 1572, Catherine commissioned Jean Bullant (1515–78) to build a new home for her within the Paris city walls.

[3] The queen mother bought the buildings around the Hôtel d'Albret to incorporate in her residence in 1572, and then obtained the convent of repentant girls in exchange for the Saint-Magloire property that she owned on the Rue Saint-Denis.

The hotel consisted of galleries and reception rooms, beautifully decorated and adorned with Catherine's art collections.

The original design was based on the Uffizi palace in Florence, but Catherine dropped that idea for a less costly plan after 1576.

[5] Engravings made by Israel Silvestre in about 1650 and a plan from about 1700 show that the Hôtel de la Reine possessed a central wing, a courtyard, and gardens.

The walled gardens of the hôtel included an aviary, a lake with a water jet, and long avenues of trees.

[citation needed] The staircase inside leads to a platform that can hold three persons and is topped by an iron cage.

[8] Carvings of shattered mirrors, torn love-knots, and the intertwined letters "C" and "H"—all symbols of Catherine's grief at the loss of her husband—are embedded in the fluting.

[5] In 1589, after the death of Catherine de Medici and the assassination of the Duke of Guise, the hotel was occupied by the princesses of the League (including Anna d'Este).

Many improvements were made to the hôtel over time, including a beautiful high portal in 1611 by Salomon de Brosse.

[6] He died in 1612 and his widow, Anne de Montafié, Countess of Clermont-en-Beauvaisis, continued acquiring numerous properties around the hotel until her death in 1644.

[6] The column, sold separately, was acquired by Louis Petit de Bachaumont, who then donated it to the City of Paris.

[6] The Halle aux blés (Corn Exchange) was designed by Nicolas Le Camus de Mézières with a circular central courtyard and a double staircase.