Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The ramparts of Langres, located in the Great East, have been protecting the upper city for nearly 2000 years. Originally, the city was a Gaulish Lingon oppidum, which became Civitas Lingonum under the Romans. The first fortifications date back to the third century, after the Alaman invasions, with a thick north wall of 3.35 m. The Gallo-Roman arch of the Market (c. 20 B.C.) was integrated into the medieval ramparts, while a second southern enclosure was added around 740 or 759 to counter the Saracen raids.

In the Middle Ages, the ramparts were reinforced in the face of Norman (IXth century) and English (One Hundred Years' War). The Tower of Navarre, built in 1512-1515 under Francis I, marks the adaptation to the cannons with its 7 m thick walls. In the 17th century Louis XIII and Richelieu modernized the defences (1639), adding ditches and bastions, such as the royal bastion (1644). Vauban proposed in 1698 a camp cut off, never realized, but the ramparts were classified as Historic Monument in 1932.

The changes continued in the 19th century, with the restoration of the southern front (1829) and the integration of Langres into the River Séré system (1873) after the defeat of 1870. The Tower of Navarre, transformed into a powder box in 1824, illustrates this development. The ramparts, sold to the state in 1832, became a heritage symbol, mixing ancient, medieval and modern heritages.

The enclosure includes remarkable elements such as the Red Tower (1340), marked with an inscription on the Franco-English war, or the Moulins Gate, protected by a barbacan under François I. The excavations revealed traces of ancient walls near the priory of Saint Martin, while doors such as that of Longe-Porte (destroyed around 1860) recall successive adaptations.

The ramparts played a key role in the conflicts, as in 1814 during the French campaign, where Langres capitulated against the coalized. Their classification in 1932 enshrines their historical value, combining military and civil architecture, from Lingons to the contemporary era.

External links