Castle of Brienne

The town of Brienne owned a feudal castle mentionned in manuscripts of the year 951, which calls to mind an enclosure with a dungeon that was destroyed many times.

In 1640, the Luxembourg family sold the castle to Henri Auguste de Loménie. Later, Nicolas Louis de Loménie inherited the County of Brienne. Among his children, two were distinguished: Etienne Charles was Prime Minister of Louis XVI and Louis Marie Athanase, Minister and Secretary of State for War. This one in 1757 inherits the old fortress of Brienne that was falling into ruin. So he decided to destroy it to rebuild the current castle.

The castle is built according to the plans of the architect JL Fontaine, from 1770 to 1778. The inauguration takes place in April 1778, but the works of art, paintings and sculptures only ends about 1789, the period of the French Revolution. A few years later, Louis Marie Athanase perished on the scaffold and his widow died in 1812.

Brienne's castle, was one of the famous castle of Champagne and because of its style with simple lines, it was named "The little Versailles of the Aube" .

During the French Campaign of 1814, the castle was completley ransacked.

In 1852, the castle belongs by alliance to the family of Bauffremont. His last owner was the Duke Theodore de Bauffremont. At his financial collapse, the castle was sold in October 1933 to an estate agent who disperses the furniture, the library and the pieces of art and leaves the castle to the abandonment.

Purchased in 1955 by the General Council of the Aube, it was set up as a psychotherapeutic center and inaugurated on 24 May 1959, a way to ensure its safguarding.

The site is not accessible to the visit excepting during the summer visits that could be origanized.

Last updated on 10/01/2024 - Office de Tourisme Intercommunal des Grands Lacs de Champagne