The Château de Boursault is a neo-Renaissance château in

Boursault Boursault () is a commune of the Marne department in northeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Marne department The following is a list of the 613 communes in the French department of Marne. The communes cooperate in th ...

, Marne, France. It was built between 1843 and 1850 by

Madame Clicquot Ponsardin Madame Clicquot, ''née'' Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin, Widow Clicquot or Veuve Clicquot (16 December 1777 – 29 July 1866), known as the "Grande Dame of Champagne", was a French Champagne producer. She took on her husband's wine business when widow ...

, the ''Veuve Clicquot'' (Cliquot Widow) who owned the

Veuve Clicquot Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin () is a Champagne house founded in 1772 and based in Reims. It is one of the largest Champagne houses. Madame Clicquot is credited with major breakthroughs, creating the first known vintage champagne in 1810, and ...

champagne house. It was sold by her heir to the Berry family of Canada from 1913 to 1927 and was used as a military hospital in both the first and second world wars. Today the Château de Boursault brand of champagne is made from grapes grown in the vineyards around the château and is aged in its cellars.

History

There are records of the seigneurie de Boursault from the 14th century, when Robert de Flandre, seigneur de Brugny, ceded the land to Geoffroy de Naast. It seems to have been returned, and given to the daughter of Robert de Flandre, who married

Henry IV, Count of Bar Henry IV of Bar (abt 1315–1344) was count of Bar from 1336 to 1344. His aunt, Joan of Bar, Countess of Surrey, governed Bar in his name during his minority. He was the son of Edward I of Bar and his wife Marie of Burgundy. He married Yolande of ...

(–1344). In 1409, Cardinal Louis de Bar (–1430) was given Boursault and other seigneuries by his father,

Robert, Duke of Bar Robert I of Bar (8 November 1344 – 12 April 1411) was Marquis of Pont-à-Mousson and Count and then Duke of Bar. He succeeded his elder brother Edward II of Bar as count in 1352. His parents were Henry IV of Bar and Yolande of Flanders. When R ...

(1344–1411). The old fortress château of the barons of Boursault dated to the 16th century. The surrounding area was covered in vineyards from that time, apart from an interval of one century when it was wooded. By the early 19th century, the medieval château was very dilapidated. The present Château de Boursault was built by Madame Clicquot Ponsardin (1777–1866), founder of the Veuve Clicquot Champagne house, in honor of the marriage of her granddaughter Marie Clémentine de Chevigné to Louis de Mortemard-Rochechouard in 1839. It replaced the old château of the barons of

. Construction began in 1843 and was completed in 1850. Madame Veuve Clicquot retired to the château at the age of 64 and died there when she was 89.

Anne de Rochechouart de Mortemart Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

(1847–1933), Duchess of Uzès, inherited the château on Madame Clicquot's death in 1866. She was the daughter of Marie Clémentine and Louis. The Duchess sold the property in 1913. It was used as a military hospital in

World War I 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 ...

(1914–18) and again during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

(1939–45). The park was converted to vineyards for production of champagne. The "Château de Boursault" brand of champagne continues to be made in the chateau and aged in its cellars. It is the only champagne with the "château" denomination in Marne.

Building

The château was built by the architect Jean-Jacques Arveuf-Fransquin (1802–76). It was located on the wooded summit of a hill planted with vines, and dominates the surrounding countryside and the village of

. It was set in a magnificent park covering . The château was designed in a

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range ...

style, to be used for formal receptions. It has monumental architecture with a high roof and heavily decorated windows. It resembles the

Château de Chambord The Château de Chambord () in Chambord, Centre-Val de Loire, France, is one of the most recognisable châteaux in the world because of its very distinctive French Renaissance architecture which blends traditional French medieval forms with cla ...

, but has many more fireplaces. An 1882 description said, "This beautiful residence contains all the riches of modern art, and attests to the generous and intelligent efforts of the princes of finance and industry to maintain the national taste at the level of its ancient traditions." The Château Deganne on the sea front in

Arcachon Arcachon ( ; ) is a commune in the southwestern French department of Gironde. It is a popular seaside resort on the Atlantic coast southwest of Bordeaux, in the Landes forest. It has a sandy beach and a mild climate said to be favourable for i ...

was built in 1853 by Adalbert Deganne. From the exterior, this building, now the Casino de la Plage, is an exact replica of the Château de Boursault.

History

Building

References

Sources

External links