Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The site of La Mothe-en-Bassigny, now reduced to a wooded hill between Outremecourt and Soulaucourt-sur-Mouzon (Haute-Marne), was once an imposing citadel of the Duchy of Bar. Founded in July 1258 by Count Thiébaut II on a 506 m promontory, it became a key commercial and military centre, housing up to 4,000 inhabitants. Its strategic position made it the second city of Lorraine after Nancy, and a symbol of resistance against France.

In the 17th century, during the Thirty Years' War, La Mothe was besieged four times by French troops. In 1634, after 141 days of siege, she fell under the orders of Cardinal Richelieu, despite the heroic death of his governor, Antoine d'Isches. Back in 1641, it was taken over in 1644 under Mazarin. The final siege (December 1644 – July 1645), marked by the pioneering use of bombs in Europe, ended in its surrender after 205 days of resistance.

Contrary to the agreements, Mazarin ordered the total destruction of the city in 1645, hunting 3,000 inhabitants and razing all buildings. This episode, traumatizing for the Lorrains, sealed the end of the duchy's autonomy, attached to France in 1766. The site, classified as a historical monument in 1923 and 2001, now houses ruins and a memorial inaugurated in 1897. An association has been working since 2005 to preserve it.

The Mothe remains a symbol of the Lorrain resistance, with a strong literary and poetic memory, as evidenced by the works of Alcide Marot. Its inclusion in the Haute-Marne (not Lorraine) after 1790 reflects a political will to integrate into Champagne, the founding region of the Kingdom of France. The site is also protected by the Natura 2000 network for its natural heritage.

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