You might not know this, but Cholet’s Mercure hotel played a part in the birth of a legend. It was here, when the building was a theatre – the performance hall is today a banquet room – that the famous handkerchief of Cholet was born. In April 1900, the singer Théodore Botrel gave a rousing rendition of 'Le Mouchoir Rouge de Cholet' ('The Red Handkerchief of Cholet'), which honours the bravery of Vendean chiefs. A quick-thinking factory owner had the brilliant idea to create a hanky of the same colours as the one in the song. It was red, like the spilt blood of Vendean fighters, and white to symbolise their rallying cry. The manufacturer sent several samples to Botrel, who then gave them to all his friends in Montmartre. The mouchoirs rouges were an immediate success, and everyone snapped them up. It’s thanks to this little square of fabric that the city owes its reputation today.
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