Varennes-en-Argonne (, literally ''Varennes in
Argonne'') or simply Varennes (German: Wöringen) is a
commune in the
Meuse department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
in the
Grand Est region in Northeastern
France. In 2019, it had a population of 639.
Geography
Varennes-en-Argonne lies on the river
Aire to the northeast of
Sainte-Menehould, near
Verdun.
History
It was the scene of the
Flight to Varennes
The royal Flight to Varennes (french: Fuite à Varennes) during the night of 20–21 June 1791 was a significant event in the French Revolution in which King Louis XVI of France, Queen Marie Antoinette, and their immediate family unsuccessfull ...
. In June 1791
Louis XVI, with his immediate family, made a dash for the nearest friendly border, that of the
Austrian Netherlands in modern
Belgium (Queen Marie-Antoinette being a sister to
Leopold II,
Archduke of Austria and
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
). But in Varennes Louis and his family were arrested, by Citizen
Drouet, the local postmaster, who had been alerted by a message received from nearby
Sainte-Menehould. It is said that at Sainte-Menehould, where the escaping party had spent the previous night, a merchant alerted the town authorities of their presence after recognizing the King's face on an
Assignat, as Louis tried to buy something from a shop. Once more the royal family returned to the
Tuileries in humiliating captivity, and Louis and Marie-Antoinette were subsequently
guillotined in 1793.
Located in the
Zone rouge, Varennes was completely destroyed during the
First World War but was reconstructed afterwards. The
Pennsylvania Memorial, a monument for volunteers from 28th Division
Pennsylvania in the First World War, was erected in Varennes during the
Interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the World War I, First World War to the beginning of the World War II, Second World War. The in ...
.
File:Arrest of Louis XVI and his Family, Varennes, 1791.jpg, Arrest of Louis XVI and his Family in Varennes, 1791.
File:Town of Varennes, France, view due west across the River Aire., 09-27-1918 - NARA - 530757.tif, Ruins of Varennes in 1918.
Points of interest
*
Arboretum de Varennes-en-Argonne
See also
*
Communes of the Meuse department
References
Varennesenargonne
{{Meuse-geo-stub