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Place de la Halle

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Château

The Château

Do you know why the château was originally built on its specific location?

A history rooted in mediaeval times

The château de Vendeuvre is among the longest-standing in the Aube region.
The first evidence of a château in the villa of Vendeuvre dates from 962 B.C., at the end of the Carolingian reign.
It was almost certainly a ‘castle mound’, a sheltered dwelling for the first lords in the 10th century. This château, erected near the source of the Barse River, was the focus of the war for succession between the last Carolingian pretender to the throne and Hugh Capet. It was destroyed in 987 B.C.
Several counts passed on their titles to their heirs until 1221. The seigniory was subsequently taken over by Hugh, Count of Champagne and Master of Troyes. To the north of the castle mound, a powerful dungeon with a high square tower was erected during the 12th and 13th centuries, featuring an indented surrounding wall and several other towers. A large seigniorial dwelling was built to the south, and a chapel was constructed to the east. Together they formed the ‘high court’ which was accessed from the south across a drawbridge and through a gate closed by a portcullis. This space was the lord’s prerogative. The outhouses of the château, where servants and tradesmen were lodged, were constructed around the existing dovecote. This was known as the ‘low court’. The fortress was taken apart in the second half of the 17th century, in accordance with Cardinal Richelieu’s 1626 edict ordering the destruction of feudal castles.
The present-day seigniorial dwelling was reconstructed at the end of the 17th century on the lower parts of the mediaeval buildings, incorporating a tower from the original 12th-13th-century château.
Many lordly lineages have succeeded one another in the château since the 13th century. Its fiefs have on occasion been fragmented and often, for want of male heirs, passed on by marriage or sold to regal officers alongside all the benefits of the surrounding lands.

Equestrian Seal of Miles X. de NOYERS as it appears on the charter that freed the inhabitants of Vendeuvre in 1341.

Lords who made history

Thus, prominent families succeeded one another: The VENDEUVRE, BROYES, DURNAY, NOYERS, MELLO, AMBOISE LA ROCHEFOUCAUD, LUXEMBOURG, MESGRIGNY, BOUTHILIER DE CHAVIGIER, PAVÉE DE PROVENCHÈRES DE VENDEUVRE, and the BOURLON DE SARTY.

The hydraulic ram

The source of the Barse River lies at the foot of the château.
The comfort of the lords improved when Joseph-Michel MONTGOLFIER invented the ‘hydraulic ram’ in 1796. He imagined a device to force the water of the Barse River to rise up to the level of the château which can still be seen today, just off the Grande Rue.

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Château

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Eau, Trésor et Origine

Water, Treasure and Origins

Do you know how many sources there are in Vendeuvre?

Sources at the root of the site

The rich soil and lush vegetation afforded by the Barse sources attracted people to the area very early on, providing them with an abundance of food. As a result, the early Gallo-Roman and Merovingian population waves settled in two main areas:
- in the vicinity of the Barse River source, spawning Vindovera;
- near another major water supply, the Claquot source, with the Vienna settlement cluster (the former Voies de Vienne district).
Over the years, people exploited the water to develop their activities.
Several mills (moulins in French) were built in close proximity to the Barse sources.
Oil was produced at the Moulin Cornet.
While the soil was processed to supply a large pottery factory at the Moulin de l’Houzotte. The water also helped to model the clay for the ‘Sainterie’ statues.
The Moulin du Prieuré (the Priory mill) located at the intersection of the Grande Rue and Avenue Leclerc, crushed grain until 1814 before becoming a paper mill. In 1837, Jean-Baptiste PROTTE purchased the mill to house his traction engine and thresher manufacturing plant which later produced the renowned Vendeuvre tractors.
The water was also used to tan hides at the lavoir des tanneries (tannery washhouse) and to power the iron-beating swifts at the Petites and Grandes Forges (Small and Large Forges).

The six key Barse sources
- Source du Château (so-called Source de la Barse)
- Source de la Grande Louze
- Source de la Petite Louze
- Source du Claquot
- Source de la Bizerne
- Source de la Grosse tête
Washhouses and mills

The different types of sources
3 types of sources supply the Barse

Claquot
Bizerne La Grosse Tête
Château La grande et petite Louze

artesian source
run-off source
outcrop source
impervious clays
water-saturated rock
rain and infiltration on porous soil

The legend of Melusine

Nicolas CHEVALIER, a notary in Vendeuvre in the 18th century, related an astonishing occurrence in his ‘Historical essay on Vandoeuvre’.
‘Renier GILLEMER, a former and elderly Templar disavowed by his brethren of the house of Troyes, a hermit residing in a clearing of the forêt d’Orient, north of Vendeuvre, in the 12th century, himself of vandal origin (a Germanic people who settled in Vendeuvre around 409 B.C.), recounts an anecdote which, while seemingly apocryphal, nonetheless merits some credit owing to its wide promotion.
According to Renier GILLEMER, the name Vandoeuvre is believed to be derived from Vandopera changed to Vandovera which is none other than the work of the Vandals. One of the very first Vandal princesses is said to have been the ruthless Melusine.
A tireless warrior, she rode the fiercest of mounts, leading her soldiers on wild expeditions, in relentless pursuit of power, domination, and devastation. Upon arriving in Vendeuvre, her troops plundered the village, slaughtered its inhabitants, and burned their houses.
On account of the many horrors that she had inflicted on the people of Vendeuvre, Melusine was turned into a fish from the waist down and forced to appear on the big tower of the Château de Vendeuvre in this dreadful state, each year, on the day of the dead (November 2nd), to beg for the end of the world through great and repeated screams.’

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Eglise Saint-Pierre

The Saint-Pierre Church

Do you know who designed the stained glass windows in the church of Vendeuvre?

History

Wars destroyed the original church in the 15th century, leading to the construction of the present-day Saint-Pierre Church, erected between 1502 and 1616.
In 1940, the devastation of the war led to a 20-year-long restoration process. As we currently see it, the building stands as it was when it reopened for worship in 1963, on the site of the old cemetery.
A noteworthy funerary plaque, embedded in the outer wall of the apse at the choir level, commemorates the burial of a former parish priest.
A 19th-century chapel is home to the graves of the lords of the Château de Vendeuvre. The porch belfry provides a link to the Renaissance period. On the left, one can admire a magnificent Pietà, a remarkable specimen of Champagne statuary from the late 15th century.

The war memorial

After the First World War, the ‘Sainterie’ also produced commemorative plaques adorning numerous churches. In the early 1920s, France began building countless war memorials all over the country. In 1921, a competition was organised in Vendeuvre to build the town’s memorial. The design submitted by architects HUGOT and ROGER from Troyes was commissioned.
Florentin MEFFROY started his career as a sculptor at the ‘Sainterie’. He created the plaster model of the statue ornamenting the monument and won first prize. His portrayal of ‘La France au Rhin’ (‘France at the Rhine’) was cast in bronze by the GODARD foundry in Paris.
This monument inaugurated on 24 September 1922 in the town hall square was transferred to the site of the old cemetery in 1990.
It honours the memory of 74 soldiers from Vendeuvre who died for France.

(1854–1927)

Curiosities

The church features some very fine artwork, including 16th-century paintings and sculptures, including a remarkable high-relief depicting Saint-Hubert, restored for the ‘Le Beau XVIème’ (‘The beautiful 16th century’) exhibition held in Troyes in 2009. It also features a pulpit from the Abbey of Clairvaux, as well as a stunning 1649 altar credited to François GIRARDON.
The resolutely modern touch was brought by Max INGRAND with his magnificent stained glass windows. A dozen statues from the Manufacture d’art chrétien (Christian Art Factory), known as the ‘Sainterie’ of Vendeuvre, embellish the church, some were donated by the NICOT family who took over the firm in 1890 and ran it until 1962.

(1908–1969)

Max INGRAND

A student of Jacques GRUBER, he was soon acknowledged as a talented Master glazier and decorator. After designing stained glass windows for the Cathedrals of Rouen, Strasbourg, Tours, Beauvais, and Sao Paulo, he turned his attention to the Saint-Pierre Church. Today, one may admire a unique set comprising some ten windowpanes, including an oculus reminiscent of the local legend of Valsuzenay.