Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Chalancey Castle, located in the eponymous commune of Haute-Marne in the Grand Est region, finds its origins at the end of the 12th century with a first feudal castle built by the lords of Grancey. The present building, rebuilt at the beginning of the 16th century by Louis Seclier (receiver general of Finances in Burgundy), breaks with medieval arrangements while retaining defensive elements such as a circular tower with cannonholes and a dogive vault in the square tower. The 16th century works include a straight façade with large crosses, while a wing and terraced gardens are added in the 17th century.

The seigneury, mentioned since 1183, passed into the hands of influential families of Langres: the Girault (XVth–XVIth centuries), the Damascuss of Thianges (XVIIth century, with Claude-Éléonor of Damascus, quarter of cavalry camp), then the Bichets in the 18th century. Jean-François Bichet de Chalancey, Baron and Colonel, rearranged the apartments in a rococo style (alcoves, stuccos, paintings) and created an English park around 1820, including an artificial cave. The family charterer, preserved at the National Archives, covers almost six centuries of history (1289–74).

Ranked a Historic Monument in 1982, the castle protects its facades, roofs, enclosures with moat, as well as richly decorated interior rooms (living room, alcove rooms, cabinets decorated with stuccos). The gardens, transformed in the 19th century by Clémence Bichet de Chalancey and her husband Louis-Auguste-Marcel d'Escaibes d'Hust, reflect the landscape tastes of the era. The site, still linked to military history (the Baron participated in the Vendée wars), illustrates the architectural and social changes of the local nobility, from the Wars of Religion to the Restoration.

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