Trois Puits et Logis du Roy : les eaux chaudes de Bourbon-l'Archambault

Bourbon-l'Archambault

Bourbon-l'Archambault, in the Allier, owes its name to Borvo, the Celtic god of bubbling springs, and to the Archambauds, first lords of Bourbon. According to the Bocage bourbonnais tourist office, Gallo-Roman baths lie partly under the hôtel Montespan, on the former place des Capucins (today place des Thermes). The ancient name Aquae Bormonis is sometimes given to the town: the Inventaire of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté judges it more likely here than for Bourbon-Lancy, but without any known dedication to prove it. The Surintendance des Eaux was created in 1605, under Henri IV. The Logis du Roy, built from 1609 to 1646 on the orders of Gaston d'Orléans according to the tourist office, houses three basins: one for the Capucins who gave treatment, one for men, one for women. It adjoins the three wells of thermal water. The king's physician, Charles Delorme, sent the great figures of the court there. Madame de Sévigné stayed there in 1687; Madame de Montespan died there in 1707; Talleyrand made it one of his favourite cure resorts. According to the legend, an emir and his two brothers, who arrived blind at Bourbon in 1317, are said to have recovered their sight after their baptism, on the advice of the hermit Jonas. The present Thermes opened in 1885, and treatments at the Logis du Roy ceased in 1995. The waters are now drawn at 55 °C.

Getting there: The Logis du Roy is a building in rue Achille-Allier, in the centre; treatments have no longer taken place there since 1995, and nothing says that it can be visited: access to the wells not verified. The present thermal establishment (the Thermes of 1885) is open to patients from 19 March to 21 November 2026 (2026 brochure of the tourist office). A thermal circuit and a ‘Suivez les gouttes’ trail are offered by the tourist office (leaflet of 2021). Coordinates: ‘Immeuble dit Logis du Roy’ node in OpenStreetMap (consulted on 22/10/2026); the château, already in Hauts-Lieux, is about 450 m away. The exact position of the three wells is not verified.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

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