Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The two castles of the princes of Salm-Salm, located at Senones in the Vosges, were built in the 18th century to affirm the power of the principality. The first castle, erected in 1754 by Prince Nicolas-Léopold, adopts a U-shaped shape with mansard roofed pavilions. Its main façade, facing Saint Peter's Abbey, and its rear façade, decorated with arcades, structure the urban space. This original castle became a central axis after 1781, when a carriageway was pierced to connect the abbey to the second castle.

The second castle, built between 1773 and 1778 north of a large court, was surrounded by French gardens (now replaced by a music school and ponds). A horse ride completed this ensemble, reinforcing the urban symmetry desired by the princes. The French Revolution marked a turning point: after the failure of the flight of Louis XVI to Varennes in 1791, Prince Constantin Alexander left Senones for Germany permanently in August 1791. The principality was annexed by the French Republic on 2 March 1793.

The first castle underwent transformations in the 19th century, including a fire in 1894 that destroyed its mansard roof, replaced by a roof in the pavilion. A second fire in 1994 destroyed the building, leaving only ruins classified as Historical Monument in 1997. Studies offer its restoration in its original state, with a housing project for the elderly. The second castle, sold as a national property in 1799, became a spinning plant in 1821 and then a mechanical learning centre. Ranked in 1994, it now houses housing after renovation.

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