Essoyes () is a commune in the

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. Impressionist artist

Pierre-Auguste Renoir Pierre-Auguste Renoir (; 25 February 1841 – 3 December 1919) was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that " ...

had a house in the town. The village, hometown of his wife Aline and model and governess of his children Gabrielle Renard, is represented in many of his paintings.

Geography

Essoyes is a quiet

Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

village located about thirty miles south of

Troyes Troyes () is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within the Champagne wine region and is near ...

, on the banks of the Ource river. The Ource, a tributary of the

Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plate ...

, was well loved by Renoir. With 745 inhabitants, the thirteen square mile village is found at the center of Champagne's Côte des Bar, on the border of Champagne and

Bourgogne Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...

History

Abbé Petel, born in Essoyes, recorded the history of the village in two volumes written in 1895. The existence of inhabitants at the site of Essoyes on the Ource river can be traced as far back as the time of the Celts. Written evidence of the village first appeared in the ninth century. Molesme Abbey exerted a strong influence over Essoyes, as the town was solidly situated between Molesme and Clairvaux. The town was held under the proprietorship of the Sommievre family until the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

. At the center of the town once stood the ancient church of Saint-Remi, among the most remarkable Romanesque buildings in the

Aube Aube () is a French department in the Grand Est region of north-eastern France. As with sixty departments in France, this department is named after a river: the Aube. With 310,242 inhabitants (2019),paper-making was a major industry in the area, and production continued until the end of the eighteenth century. On 12 March 1763, Essoyes was ravaged by a fire. At that time, most houses were built of wood, with thatched roofs, and only the few homes constructed of stone were spared. Only once in its history has Essoyes experienced a division. In 1894, the town of

took over the property of Servigny as it offered the town a much needed source of water. In Servigny is located an eleventh-century edifice that served as a chapel dedicated to Saint Bernard. Today the chapel is an historic monument. Saint Bernard, the founder of Clairvaux Abbey, liked to take time to rest in this area between Molesme and Clairvaux. The French Revolution saw Essoyes classified within the district of Bar-sur-Seine. From the seventh century until 1926, the town was a part of the ancient arrondissement of Bar-sur-Seine. In 1926, Essoyes became a part of the arrondissement of Troyes. The old château, bought and expanded by Olympe Heriot at the end of the nineteenth century, was bought back by the town in 1936. A school was set up in the left wing of the building, and the tax office in the right wing. The Darras school, which came about as a private establishment at the beginning of the twentieth century, was later transformed into the rectory in the 1920s. Since September 2001, the building has acted as the town's library and community center.

Population

Sights

* The Maison de la Vigne, located in the château stables and constructed between 1890 and 1892 by Olympe Heriot * The workshop of Pierre-Auguste Renoir, constructed in 1905 in the garden of his family home on rue de l'Extra * The cemetery, where the tomb of Renoir, his son Jean Renoir, and Auguste Heriot can be found

Personalities

* Auguste Heriot (1826–1879), co-founder of the Grands Magasins du Louvre * Olympe Heriot (1833–1899), brother of Auguste Heriot, director of the Grands Magasins du Louvre and founder of the Orphelinat-Ecole Heriot *Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919), French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style.

Geography

History

Population

Sights

Personalities

See also