Porte Sainte-Croix

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Porte Sainte-Croix (2010)
City side without decoration (2014)

The Porte Sainte-Croix ( Porte Dauphine from 1770 to the French Revolution ) is a triumphal arch built from 1769 to 1770 in the French city of Châlons-en-Champagne .

history

In the 16th century, the Porte Sainte-Croix was a fortified city gate in what was then Châlons-sur-Marne , designed to ward off attacks from the east. After Alsace and Lorraine came under the rule of the Kingdom of France in the 17th century , this danger no longer existed and the city decided to demolish the Porte Sainte-Croix , which was threatened with decay .

For Marie Antoinette's bridal voyage in 1770, when Châlon's stopover on the way from Vienna to Versailles, the director of the Champagne Province , Gaspard-Louis Rouillé d'Orfeuil , had the triumphal arch built as a permanent monument in Châlons. For this he commissioned the architect Nicolas Durand . Work began in August 1769. Two sculptors were brought in for the decoration, but they were not finished on time for the opening when Marie-Antoinette passed through on May 11, 1770. The gate was therefore temporarily decorated. The sculptures on the town side have remained unfinished since then.

For the inauguration by Marie-Antoinette on May 11, 1770, she attended a firework display that was designed by the Parisian fireworker Bray. In honor of Marie-Antoinette, the triumphal arch was called Porte Dauphine until the French Revolution . After the revolution, it was renamed Porte Sainte-Croix again .

The author Alain-Charles Gruber notes that the construction of a permanent structure as a backdrop for a celebration is "almost unique", but should also be seen in the context that the celebration for Rouillé d'Orfeuil is a welcome justification for that Construction project and related expenses.

The namesake Marie-Antoinette did not pass the building erected in her honor until 31 years later during the Revolution, and this under dramatic circumstances, namely during the failed escape to Varennes in 1791 and after her arrest during the subsequent transfer back to Paris.

In 1941 the Porte Sainte-Croix was listed as a Monument Historique .

See also

Web links

Commons : Porte Sainte-Croix  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Châlons, ville d'art et d'histoire. Châlons-en-Champagne City Council, December 13, 2017, accessed December 17, 2017 (French).
  2. ↑ a b c Alain-Charles Gruber: Les grandes fêtes et leurs décors à l'époque de Louis XVI . Librairie Droz, Geneva 1972, ISBN 978-2-600-03518-7 , pp. 48 (French, limited preview in Google Book search).
  3. ↑ a b Châlons-en-Champagne: Porte Sainte-Croix. In: Michelin Voyage . Retrieved December 17, 2017 (French).
  4. ^ Porte Sainte-Croix. In: Base Mérimée . Ministry of Culture and Communication of the French Republic, accessed December 17, 2017 (French).

Coordinates: 48 ° 57 ′ 6.2 ″  N , 4 ° 22 ′ 6 ″  E