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Origin and history

The Museum of the Dukes of Württemberg came into being in 1843, when the medical circle of Montbéliard proposed the creation of a scientific museum. In 1852, the Société d'émulation de Montbéliard (SEM), a scholarly society dedicated to natural sciences, arts and history, gathered its first collections. These holdings were enriched in 1917 by the bequest of the Hôtel Beurnier-Rossel (XVIII century) in the city, becoming the first place to exhibit collections.

Until 1960, the SEM jointly manages the city, state and its collections. In 1963, the castle's collections were transferred to the city, followed in 1992 by those of the Hôtel Beurnier-Rossel. A convention then formalizes the collaboration between the city and the SEM. The museum, now labeled Musée de France, covers various fields: archaeology, fine arts, natural history, decorative arts and contemporary art, distributed between the castle (XIII century) and the former hotel.

The Château de Montbéliard, built between the 14th and 18th centuries, is home to remarkable elements such as the Henriette Tower (XIV-15th centuries), the Frédéric Tower (XVIth century) and a 1751 house body. The museum presents the history of the principality, archaeological collections (including a first-century laruary and a Gaulish carnyx), fine arts (with works by Jean Messager), and objects related to the Dukes of Württemberg, such as those of Sophie Dorothée, wife of Tsar Paul I of Russia.

The Museum of Archaeology and Natural History, named the Georges Cuvier Museum, exhibits major pieces such as a 180 million-year-old ichthyosaur, 18th- and 19th-century grasslands, and entomological collections. These funds reflect the scientific importance of the region, marked by prehistoric discoveries (the deposit of Romain-la-Roche, 150,000 years old) and historical bequests, such as the basin of the temperance of François Briot (XVI century).

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