Since 1909, an elegant mansion in Boulevard du Régent/Regentlaan has doubled as the Résidence de France, the official home of the serving French Ambassador to Belgium. Neoclassical in design, it was built by architect Jean Culot for Viscount Charles de Spoelberch de Lovenjoul, an erudite aristocrat who bequeathed his collection of original manuscripts by 19th-century French writers along with his mansion to the Institut de France in 1907. The building came into the possession of the French government two years later. It still boasts an attractive series of reception rooms, as well as gardens redesigned by landscape architect René Péchère in 1961. Beyond these lies the Chancellery, which faces onto Rue Ducale/Hertogsstraat. This building was designed in Art Nouveau style in 1910 by French architect Georges Chedanne. The façade, clad in white stone, features three groups of three windows on the first floor, whose arched tympana are decorated with leaves and have keystones inscribed with the letters 'RF', standing for 'République Française'. Pairs of figures beneath garlands of foliage form the corbels of these windows. The figures symbolise Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. Both the Chancellery and the Ambassador's Residence provide the backdrop for many cultural and diplomatic meetings and receptions. (Listed 17/06/2010)