The Château de Montmort is a stately home built on the site of a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

in the '' commune'' of Montmort-Lucy in the

Marne Marne can refer to: Places France *Marne (river), a tributary of the Seine *Marne (department), a département in northeastern France named after the river * La Marne, a commune in western France *Marne, a legislative constituency (France) Nethe ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

'' of France. Describing the ''château'',

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

wrote of a "delightful hustle and bustle of turrets of weather vanes, gables, skylights and fireplaces" (''ravissant tohu-bohu de tourelles de girouettes, de pignons, de lucarnes et de cheminées'').

History

A castle existed as early as the 11th century and there is still evidence of its existence in the ramparts and ditches. The present buildings seem to date from the 16th century, the time of their reconstruction. The castle was the headquarters for

Karl von Bülow Karl Wilhelm Paul von Bülow (24 March 1846 – 31 August 1921) was a German field marshal commanding the German 2nd Army during World War I from 1914 to 1915. Biography Born in Berlin to the distinguished Prussian military family von Bülow, ...

's German Second Army during the

First Battle of the Marne The First Battle of the Marne was a battle of the First World War fought from 5 to 12 September 1914. It was fought in a collection of skirmishes around the Marne River Valley. It resulted in an Entente victory against the German armies in the ...

. During the battle, Bülow and

OHL OHL or Ohl may refer to: Initialisms *Latvian Hockey Higher League, known in Latvian as the ''Optibet hokeja līga'' *Oberste Heeresleitung, the Supreme Army Command of Germany in World War I *Obrascón Huarte Lain, a Spanish construction company * ...

Commander Helmuth von Moltke the Younger's representative. Richard Hentsch. held a crucial meeting at the castle and agreed that the force was threatened by an

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

encirclement. The subsequent retreat of Bulow's Second and Alexander von Kluck's First Armies was a crucial turning point of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Description

The lower structure has

mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. Types Bay window is a generic term for all protruding window constructions, regardless of whether they are curved or angular, or r ...

s characteristic of the early

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...

. At the sides, two flush towers were built to hold cannons. Two wings of the lower structure were removed in the 19th century. The higher structure, built later, carries the date of 1577.The building plan corresponds with a reference to the former castle in an old document: a square

keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...

confined by circular towers. One tower includes an inclined ramp to allow horses to reach the higher levels. The ground floor is composed of vaulted rooms. On the first floor, in the skirtings of the large living room, the engraver and theatre decorator

Eugène Cicéri Étienne Eugène Cicéri (27 January 1813 – 20 April 1890) was a French painter, illustrator, engraver and theatrical designer. Biography He came from an artistic family. His father was the scenographer, Pierre-Luc-Charles Cicéri. He w ...

installed painted fabrics in 1851, taking as his inspiration the engravings of

Sébastien Bourdon Sébastien Bourdon (2 February 1616 – 8 May 1671) was a French painter and engraver. His ''chef d'œuvre'' is ''The Crucifixion of St. Peter'' made for the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris, Notre Dame. Biography Bourdon was born i ...

. The gatehouse with its brick turrets is also a 19th-century addition. The ''château'' is surrounded by a park and kitchen garden. The ''château'' and its grounds have been protected since 2001 as a ''

monument historique ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...

'' by the French Ministry of Culture. It had previously been classified and declassified in 1888. Monmort la salle des gardes du château.jpg, The guard room Montmort château et parc.jpg, View from the park

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montmort, Chateau De Castles in Grand Est Monuments historiques of Grand Est Châteaux in Marne (department) Historic house museums in Grand Est Museums in Marne (department)

History

Description

See also

References

External links