Mont Royal (fortress ruins)

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Depiction of the Mont Royal fortress from 1693
Wall remains of the fortress

Mont Royal (built 1687 to 1698) is a fortress ruin north of the town of Traben-Trarbach in the district of Bernkastel-Wittlich , Rhineland-Palatinate .

Geographical location

The fortress ruins Mont Royal is located on the ridge of the Moselle river loop near Traben-Trarbach, called Mont Royal , at an altitude of 240 to 305  m and is located around 2.7 kilometers north of this small town between the municipality of Kröv in the west and the district of Kövenig on the east side .

history

The fortress Mont Royal was built in the course of the reunion policy , i.e. the annexation policy of Louis XIV , in the period from 1687 to 1698 according to the plans of the fortress builder Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban , as a basis for further expansion to the east. The plant was built by up to 8,000  corporal labor at considerable expense and covered an area of ​​50  hectares , with a length of 1,600 meters and a width of up to 750 meters. The length of the wall was 2920 meters with a height of up to 20 meters. The citadel of the fortress was protected by five bastions . A crew of 8,450  soldiers and 3,000  cavalry horses was planned. The very large fortress on non-French territory put a considerable strain on the French state budget.

According to the provisions of the Peace of Rijswijk of October 30, 1697, the razing began before the construction was fully completed.

The remains of the fortress were partially excavated from 1929 to 1937 with the help of the Reich Labor Service . The political leadership of the time hoped that this action would have a propaganda effect on France. After the Second World War , with increasing tourism, the remains were re-opened for visitors.

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : Mont Royal  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files
  • Historical maps as digital copies 1 , 2 and 3

Coordinates: 49 ° 58 ′ 29.1 ″  N , 7 ° 6 ′ 48.9 ″  E