Château de Sedan

Sedan

Overlooking the Meuse from a rocky promontory, the fortified castle of Sedan came into being in 1424 when Évrard de La Marck bought the lordship and in six years built a manor house with two towers around a former Benedictine priory mentioned as early as 1306. His descendants enlarged it ceaselessly to adapt it to the emerging artillery: the failed sieges by Maximilian of Austria in 1495 and Emperor Charles V in 1521 preceded the construction, between 1553 and 1572, of the four great bastions — du Gouverneur, Fourchu, des Dames and du Roy. In 1549, Henry II recognised the sovereignty of Sedan, which became an independent principality of twenty-one villages for nearly a century. In 1642, the last prince, Frédéric-Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne, ceded the principality to Louis XIII to save his life; Sedan remained French military ground for 320 years. Turenne, its most illustrious son, was born here in 1611. Bought back by the town between 1962 and 1965 and listed as a monument historique, it was voted "the French people's favourite monument" in 2023.

Getting there : Cour du Château, 08200 Sedan (Ardennes); reached via the E44 motorway, exit 3 Sedan-Château, or the A34/E46, exit 4 Sedan-centre; guided tours, immersive trail "L'Épopée des Princes de Sedan" opened in 2024, not accessible to people with reduced mobility

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound