Chaumont () is a

commune of France The () is a level of administrative division in the French Republic. French are analogous to civil townships and incorporated municipalities in the United States and Canada, ' in Germany, ' in Italy, or ' in Spain. The United Kingdom's equ ...

, and the capital (or ''

préfecture In France, a prefecture (french: préfecture) may be: * the ''chef-lieu de département'', the commune in which the administration of a department is located; * the ''chef-lieu de région'', the commune in which the administration of a region is ...

'') of the

Haute-Marne Haute-Marne (; English: Upper Marne) is a department in the Grand Est region of Northeastern France. Named after the river Marne, its prefecture is Chaumont. In 2019, it had a population of 172,512.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 ...

and is situated on the

Paris-Est–Mulhouse-Ville railway The railway from Paris-Est to Mulhouse-Ville is a 491-kilometre long railway line, that connects Paris to Mulhouse via Troyes, Chaumont and Belfort, France. The railway was opened in several stages between 1848 and 1858. Route The Paris–Mulhouse ...

, which runs over a tall and long viaduct built in 1856. Chaumont station has rail connections to Paris, Reims, Dijon, Mulhouse and regional destinations.

History

Historically, Chaumont was the seat of the Counts of Bassigny and later of Champagne, receiving a charter in 1190. It was the venue of an offensive treaty against

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

signed by the United Kingdom, Austria,

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

, and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

in 1814, by which they agreed to continue war until France returned to its 1792 boundaries. Chaumont was bombed in 1940 and 1944 during World War II. From 1951 to 1967, the United States Air Force under NATO operated the Chaumont-Semoutiers Air Base on the outskirts of the city.

Notable buildings

* The church of St-Jean-Baptiste dates from the 13th century, the choir and lateral chapels belonging to the 15th and 16th. In the interior the sculptured triforium (15th century), the spiral staircase in the transept and a Holy Sepulchre are of interest. * The Tour Hautefeuille (a keep of the 11th century) is the principal relic of a château of the counts of Champagne * In the Square Philippe-Lebon stands a statue of the engineer Philippe Lebon (1767–1804), born in Haute-Marne. The bronze statue was melted down during the second world war and replaced by a stone copy.

Population

Notable people

Edmé Bouchardon Edmé Bouchardon (; 29 May 169827 July 1762) was a French sculptor best known for his neoclassical statues in the gardens of the Palace of Versailles, his medals, his equestrian statue of Louis XV of France for the Place de la Concorde (destroy ...

(1698–1762), sculptor * Luc Chatel (born 1964), politician *

Lucie Décosse Lucie Décosse (born 6 August 1981 in Chaumont) is a retired female French judoka. Career Décosse competed in the half-middleweight (57–63 kg) category until 2008. Thereafter, she switched to the middleweight (63–70 kg) category ...

(born 1981), judo player *

Denis Decrès Denis Decrès (18 June 1761 – 7 December 1820) was an officer of the French Navy and count, later duke of the First Empire. Early career Decrès was born in Châteauvillain, Haute-Marne on 18 June 1761 and joined the Navy at the age of 18, ...

(1761–1820), Minister of the French Navy *

André Godard André Godard (21 January 1881 – 31 July 1965) was an archaeologist, architect and historian of French and Middle Eastern Art. He served as the director of the Iranian Archeological Service for many years. Life Godard was born in Chaumont. ...

(1881–1965), architect and archaeologist *

Emmanuel Guillaume-Rey Baron Alban Emmanuel Guillaume-Rey (28 May 1837 – 4 April 1916) was a French archaeologist, topographer and orientalist. He is known for his historical works on Crusader states and on military fortifications in the Near East. He is considered by ...

(1837–1916), archaeologist, topographer and orientalist * Jean Masson (1907–1964), politician *

Louise Michel Louise Michel (; 29 May 1830 – 9 January 1905) was a teacher and important figure in the Paris Commune. Following her penal transportation to New Caledonia she embraced anarchism. When returning to France she emerged as an important French a ...

(1830–1905), anarchist *

Christian Pineau Christian Pineau (; 14 October 1904, in Chaumont-en-Bassigny, Haute-Marne, France – 5 April 1995, in Paris) was a noted French Resistance fighter, who later served an important term as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1956 through 1958. Life ...

(1904–1995), politician * Nicole Rieu (born 1949), singer and director

Sport

The

Chaumont Volley-Ball 52 Chaumont Volley-Ball 52 is a French volleyball club, founded in 1996 and based in Chaumont (Haute-Marne) and have played in Ligue A since the 2012-2013 season. It won the 2017 LNV Ligue A and the French Supercup in 2017 and 2021. The club finish ...

, is a volleyball club playing in

Pro A (volleyball) LNV Ligue A Masculine (LAM) is the top men's volleyball league in France, established in 1938. It is governed by the Ligue Nationale de Volley (LNV), an independent body that runs French professional volleyball under delegation from the French ...

, created in 1996. The club became champion of France in Ligue A during the 2016–2017 season. She twice finished second in 2017-2018 and 2018–2019 seasons. On 2 April 2017, for the first time in its history, the CVB52 became a finalist in the 2016–17 CEV Challenge Cup. On 7 October 2017 in Mulhouse, the CVB52HM won a second title by becoming champion of the French Supercup. The club also participated in the

CEV Champions League The CEV Champions League is the top official competition for men's volleyball clubs from the whole of Europe. The competition is organised every year by the European Volleyball Confederation. Formula (2018–19 to present) Qualification A tot ...

and

CEV Cup The CEV Cup is the second tier official competition for men's Volleyball clubs of Europe. The competition takes place every year. Until 2000, it was the CEV Cup Winners' Cup. In 2000 it was renamed CEV Top Teams Cup and in 2007 it was renamed CE ...

. The Chaumont FC, is a football club, created in 1957. Which spent 16 seasons in the second division ( Ligue 2) under the name of E.C.A.C. She finished second in the 1971 season. ECAC Rugby Chaumont, created in 1968. Playing in the 1st Grand-Est Series for the 2018–2019 season. The club finished second in the Burgundy Championship 2nd series 2018 and second in the Grand-Est Championship 2nd series 2019. The Chaumont Handball 52 or ECAC Chaumont Handball, created in 1963. Playing in the National 2 women's season since 2018–2019. ECAC Basket Chaumont, created in 1946. Playing in Regional Championship 2. The Phénix de Chaumont, is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

club playing in the Grand-Est Regional Challenge, finalist of the 2018 Grand-Est Regional Challenge championship. La Chaumontaise Gymnastique, is a gymnastics club founded in 1883 under the name of "Gymnastics and Shooting Society"; it is also the oldest association in the town of Chaumont. The Tomb Raiders of Chaumont, is a

Roller in-line hockey Roller inline hockey, or inline hockey is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and ice hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal (sport), goal to score poi ...

and hockey club. The Vélo Club Chaumontais is a cycling club created in 1923. The association is one of the oldest in the city.

Twin towns – sister cities

Chaumont is twinned with: *

Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 45,198 at the 2011 census. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, in the foothills of the Pennines, east of Manche ...

, England, United Kingdom (1956) *

Ivrea Ivrea (; pms, Ivrèja ; ; lat, Eporedia) is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. Situated on the road leading to the Aosta Valley (part of the medieval Via Francigena), it strad ...

, Italy (1983) *

Bad Nauheim Bad Nauheim is a town in the Wetteraukreis district of Hesse state of Germany. As of 2020, Bad Nauheim has a population of 32,493. The town is approximately north of Frankfurt am Main, on the east edge of the Taunus mountain range. It is a wor ...