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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The castle of Bétange, located in the commune of Florange (Moselle, Grand Est), has its origins in the nineteenth century, after the destruction of a previous building in 1521 during the conflicts affecting the region. The gap of Bétange, mentioned in the form of Baitanges (1352) or Bettingen (17th century), was once an afterfief of Florange, linked to the noble family carrying "sand to the lion crawling silver". The present estate was rebuilt in 1828, and then thoroughly redesigned (1856, 1927, Second World War), mixing neo-classical and eclectic styles with local materials such as yellow limestone.

In 1834, the master of the Victor-François de Wendel forges acquired the castle, which has since remained in his progeny: the barons of Gargan, the Counts of Mitry, and their granddaughter Fani (since 2019). The park, designed "in English" by Theodore de Gargan, was registered in 1993 for its landscape elements (water, wood, Chinese pavilion) and its wrought iron fence. The castle itself, with its intact distributions of the 1920s (reception rooms, bourgeois rooms, attices for domestic servants), is protected in 2007.

The site is now threatened by the A31 bis motorway project, two routes of which are envisaged to cross the path of the chestnut trees (56 trees, labeled "Together wooded remarkable"). An associative mobilization (1,800 signatures in 2021) highlights the park's biodiversity, a refuge for 48 protected species including 12 bats, as well as a quadrennial oak. The consultation on the routes, scheduled for 2022, contrasts heritage preservation and cross-border traffic issues towards Luxembourg.

The architecture of the castle reflects the evolution of the lifestyles of the upper bourgeoisie of Lorraine: basements dedicated to services, ground floor decorated with neo-XVIIIrd woodwork for receptions, floors reserved for bedrooms and bathrooms. The successive modifications (1927, Second World War) reflect adaptations to historical contexts, while the park, fed by the Mésing, embodies the romantic landscape ideal of the 19th century.

The controversy around the motorway revealed the ecological importance of the estate: the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO) and the CEPCFSP have identified rare species such as the great rhinolophe, which is in the process of extinction. These challenges have earned the site the labels Refuge for bats and Refuge for birds, strengthening its status as a living heritage, both historical, landscape and natural.

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