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Origin and history

The Porte Sainte-Croix de Châlons-en-Champagne is a triumphal arch built in 1770, replacing an ancient medieval gate dated back to 1254. This first gate, integrated into the city's defensive enclosure, played a key role during the Hundred Years' War. It was located slightly north of the current location and was named after a nearby chapel, which is now destroyed. In the sixteenth century, the gate was modernized to strengthen fortifications in the face of threats from the East, especially under Louis XIV.

In 1769, the medieval gate, which had become obsolete, was destroyed to give way to a building more representative of the urban ambitions of the time. The Intendant Rouillé of Orfeuil laid the plans for a neo-classical triumph arch, designed by the engineer Bochet de Colluel. The work, led by the entrepreneur Prévot, was completed in February 1770. The new door, dedicated to Marie-Antoinette during her visit to Châlons in May 1770, was renamed Porte Dauphine in her honour, marking the Franco-Austrian alliance.

The door, adorned with trophies carved by Antoine Lépine, was originally to have bas-reliefs representing Mars and Minerva holding portraits of the Dauphin and the Dauphine, as well as two side pavilions never built. These decorative elements, partially made or temporary, disappeared after 1792, when the arms of France and Austria were hammered. Classified as a historical monument in 1941, it now bears witness to the civil architecture of the eighteenth century and the urban history of Châlons.

The old medieval gate, built between 1536 and 1544 and strengthened in 1609, dominated a bastion with ditch and drawbridge. Its demolition in 1769 was part of a larger project to modernize the city's entrances, motivated by fiscal (perception of grant) rather than military reasons. The present door, made of Savonnières stone, is 19.50 m wide for 17,25 m high, with a central arcade of 11,25 m high.

The initial project included a Latin inscription (Aeternum stet ut amor) and additional sculptures by Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, never realized. The gate marked the south entrance of Châlons, on the Vitry-le-François road, and symbolized the transition from a fortified city to an open city, reflecting the political and social transformations of the Enlightenment century.

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