Châtillon-sur-Marne (, literally ''Châtillon on Marne'') is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. It lies in the valley of the Marne, surrounded by the '' Parc Naturel de la Montagne de Reims''. It lies in the historic province of

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

. The village stands above sloping vineyards and fields: Épernay, the principal

entrepôt An entrepôt ( ; ) or transshipment port is a port, city, or trading post where merchandise may be imported, stored, or traded, usually to be exported again. Such cities often sprang up and such ports and trading posts often developed into comm ...

of the Champagne wines, is within walking distance.

History

Here Pope Urban II, Eudes de Châtillon, whose uncle Guy de Roucy, bishop of Reims mentored his early career, was born in the family of the seigneurs of Châtillon, who inherited the lands and titles of

Count of Blois Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

when Hugues de Châtillon, comte de Saint Pol, married Marie the heiress of the counts of Blois in 1230. In 1391, the seigneury of Châtillon passed with the honors of Blois into the royal family of France. Here also was born Reynald of Châtillon, called "Le Loup" (the Wolf) by Muslims, who went to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

on the Second Crusade and remained there for the rest of his life. In 1181 he raided the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

, aiming to attack

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

and

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

, and attacked again in 1183, forcing a counterattack from

Saladin Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known as Saladin, was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from a Kurdish family, he was the first sultan of both Egypt and Syria. An important figure of the Third Crusade, h ...

, who captured

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

in 1187, setting the stage for the Third Crusade. Many Gallo-Roman fortifications called ''castellionum'' have given rise to French places called Châtillon. The little fortress called ''Castellionum super Matronam'' commanded a strategic crossroads in the valley of the Marne and was repeatedly attacked and demolished and refortified, including during 1575. The modern village retains the traces of the densely built fortified village in the narrowness of its streets. Within the commune there is a triumphal statue of Urban II. The statue is 9 metres tall with an interior spiral staircase, and stands on a drumlike socle that raises it to 25 metres. The project was suggested in 1862: land for it was donated and 30,000 francs were collected, including 3000 francs from

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

. The statue, which was erected from August 1879, is composed of eighty blocks of Kersanton granite executed by the sculptor Le Goff. The blocks were brought one at a time by ox-cart from Port-à-Binson. The statue was inaugurated July 21, 1887 by the papal nuncio and two dozen prelates, to a crowd of 20,000 in grandiose fêtes that lasted for three days. The 10-metre cross formerly in Urban's hands had been brought by pilgrims from the Holy Land and was carried on men's backs to its final position.

References

External links

Comtes de Châtillon-Blois
(French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Chatillon-Sur-Marne Chatillonsurmarne