Château de Sierck
The Château des Ducs de Lorraine is located in Sierck les Bains in the north-west of the Moselle département, 18 km north-east of Thionville, and 3 km from the Luxembourg and German borders.
Roughly ovoid in shape, it occupies a defensive site on a rocky promontory of red sandstone at the confluence of the Moselle valley and the small Montenach valley.
With an average altitude of 195 m at the summit terrace, it is surrounded by three hills, the Stromberg to the north (314 m), the Altenberg to the southwest (337 m) and the Kirschberg to the east (371 m).
Origin of the castle
It is not known when the castle was built. Tradition has it that it was built on the remains of a Gallo-Roman castel, but there is nothing today to confirm or refute this hypothesis. The only certainty is that the castle already existed in the 11th century, as shown by a deed of the Duke of Lorraine Gérard d'Alsace (1048-1070), dated 1067 and made in the castle of Sierck, as well as by coins minted in Sierck during the reign of the same duke.
Of course, nothing remains of the 11th century. Constantly redeveloped to adapt to advances in poliorcetics (with the advent of artillery in particular), the château in its current state dates back to the late 15th century, and includes buildings added in the 18th century.
From the outset, the château was a favorite residence of the Dukes of Lorraine, who frequently stayed here with their court. These included Gérard d'Alsace (1048-1070), Mathieu II (1220-1251), whose wife Catherine de Limbourg founded the convent of Marienfloss in 1238, and Jean I (1346-1390), in whose honor it is said that a flaming wheel was lowered from the summit of Stromberg on Midsummer's Day, charles II (1390-1431), whose wife Marguerite de Bavière founded the hospital in Sierck and brought Father Adolf d'Essen, inventor of the rosary, to Marienfloss, and Charles IV (1624-1675), who lived there for several years with his court.
In their absence, the castle was entrusted to the de Sierck family, whose power grew over the generations, reaching its peak in the 15th century with Arnold VI (1366-1455), Count of the Holy Roman Empire and builder of Meinsberg Castle, and his son Jacques, Archbishop-Elector of Trier from 1439 to 1456.
The castle was repeatedly besieged, resisting victoriously when the dukes resided there (in 1131 with Duke Simon I; in 1516 with Duke Antoine le Bon), but succumbing in their absence (in 1475 to Charles le Téméraire; in 1633 to the French; in 1635 it was retaken by Captain Maillard's Lorraine troops, only to be reconquered eight years later, in 1643, by French troops commanded by the Duc d'Enghien, the "Grand Condé").
The town of Sierck and its castle were officially integrated into the French kingdom by the Treaty of Vincennes in 1661. The château lost its residential function and was reduced to a stronghold on the borders of the kingdom.
Since then, the castle has been dismantled or restored as circumstances dictated.
In 1673, as it was considered too costly to defend, it was disarmed and dismantled by order of Louvois, Louis XIV's Secretary of State for War: the residential buildings were almost entirely destroyed, and the towers levelled.
In 1705, after forcing the retreat of the Duke of Malbourough, who had set up his headquarters in the château de Manderen, Marshal de Villars, aware of the strategic importance of the site, ordered work to restore the château to a defensible state.
In 1713, in execution of the Treaty of Utrecht which put an end to the War of Spanish Succession, the castle was once again disarmed. From 1733 to 1752, the fort was gradually restored under the impetus of Marshal de Belle-Isle, governor of the province of Trois-Evéchés: the fortifications were reorganized and the military buildings fitted out.
In 1790, the fort was disarmed of its artillery. In 1811, deemed unimportant, it was sold to the treasury. Bought back in 1814, it was partly restored before being definitively decommissioned in 1866, when it became the property of the town of Sierck les Bains.
Roughly ovoid in shape, it occupies a defensive site on a rocky promontory of red sandstone at the confluence of the Moselle valley and the small Montenach valley.
With an average altitude of 195 m at the summit terrace, it is surrounded by three hills, the Stromberg to the north (314 m), the Altenberg to the southwest (337 m) and the Kirschberg to the east (371 m).
Origin of the castle
It is not known when the castle was built. Tradition has it that it was built on the remains of a Gallo-Roman castel, but there is nothing today to confirm or refute this hypothesis. The only certainty is that the castle already existed in the 11th century, as shown by a deed of the Duke of Lorraine Gérard d'Alsace (1048-1070), dated 1067 and made in the castle of Sierck, as well as by coins minted in Sierck during the reign of the same duke.
Of course, nothing remains of the 11th century. Constantly redeveloped to adapt to advances in poliorcetics (with the advent of artillery in particular), the château in its current state dates back to the late 15th century, and includes buildings added in the 18th century.
From the outset, the château was a favorite residence of the Dukes of Lorraine, who frequently stayed here with their court. These included Gérard d'Alsace (1048-1070), Mathieu II (1220-1251), whose wife Catherine de Limbourg founded the convent of Marienfloss in 1238, and Jean I (1346-1390), in whose honor it is said that a flaming wheel was lowered from the summit of Stromberg on Midsummer's Day, charles II (1390-1431), whose wife Marguerite de Bavière founded the hospital in Sierck and brought Father Adolf d'Essen, inventor of the rosary, to Marienfloss, and Charles IV (1624-1675), who lived there for several years with his court.
In their absence, the castle was entrusted to the de Sierck family, whose power grew over the generations, reaching its peak in the 15th century with Arnold VI (1366-1455), Count of the Holy Roman Empire and builder of Meinsberg Castle, and his son Jacques, Archbishop-Elector of Trier from 1439 to 1456.
The castle was repeatedly besieged, resisting victoriously when the dukes resided there (in 1131 with Duke Simon I; in 1516 with Duke Antoine le Bon), but succumbing in their absence (in 1475 to Charles le Téméraire; in 1633 to the French; in 1635 it was retaken by Captain Maillard's Lorraine troops, only to be reconquered eight years later, in 1643, by French troops commanded by the Duc d'Enghien, the "Grand Condé").
The town of Sierck and its castle were officially integrated into the French kingdom by the Treaty of Vincennes in 1661. The château lost its residential function and was reduced to a stronghold on the borders of the kingdom.
Since then, the castle has been dismantled or restored as circumstances dictated.
In 1673, as it was considered too costly to defend, it was disarmed and dismantled by order of Louvois, Louis XIV's Secretary of State for War: the residential buildings were almost entirely destroyed, and the towers levelled.
In 1705, after forcing the retreat of the Duke of Malbourough, who had set up his headquarters in the château de Manderen, Marshal de Villars, aware of the strategic importance of the site, ordered work to restore the château to a defensible state.
In 1713, in execution of the Treaty of Utrecht which put an end to the War of Spanish Succession, the castle was once again disarmed. From 1733 to 1752, the fort was gradually restored under the impetus of Marshal de Belle-Isle, governor of the province of Trois-Evéchés: the fortifications were reorganized and the military buildings fitted out.
In 1790, the fort was disarmed of its artillery. In 1811, deemed unimportant, it was sold to the treasury. Bought back in 1814, it was partly restored before being definitively decommissioned in 1866, when it became the property of the town of Sierck les Bains.
This establishment is Accueil Vélo and offers specific services for cyclists.
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