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Origin and history

The church Notre-Dame-de-l'Assumption de Choiseul, located in the Haute-Marne, was given in 1157 by Raynard I, lord of Choiseul, to the abbey of Molesme with its tithes and land to build a priory there. It then became a parish and prioral church, dependent on the Benedictine order. His history was marked by successive architectural transformations, including the addition of a transept and a flamboyant Gothic choir in 1489.

The early church, probably dating from the 12th century, now retains only its north wall. The nave of the 13th century was enlarged and restored over the centuries, with major modifications such as the extension of the bell tower before 1489 and the destruction of its arrow by fire in 1705. The chapel of Saint-Nicolas, backed by the castle of Choiseul from the 11th century, initially served as a parish church before being demolished in 1796.

A local legend tells that a girl accused of witchcraft in the 16th century cursed the church bell, dated 1559, to prevent her from protecting the land from hail. This bell, nicknamed Choiseul's big dog, is known as the oldest in Haute-Marne after Clefmont. The priory, founded after 1157, was abandoned in the seventeenth century and its buildings destroyed between 1618 and 1671.

The building underwent several restorations in the 19th century, such as the expansion of the windows in 1850 or the construction of the southern foothill of the bedside in 1894. Ranked a historic monument in 1928, the church remains a major architectural and historical testimony of the region, linked to the Choiseul family and the abbey of Molesme.

The chapel Saint-Nicolas, dedicated to Saint Gengoul, was associated with a founding legend of the castle of Choiseul. The lords of Choiseul, who claimed to be descendants of the saint, honored him until his demolition in 1796. The priory, initially Benedictine, was ceded around 1700 to English Benedictine refugees in France.

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