Blaye Citadel
Blaye is a French city in the Gironde department .
The city is located on the eastern bank of the Gironde near the south and upstream city of Bordeaux with its important port. To protect this port, a citadel was built in Blaye in the 17th century .
Citadelle de Blaye
In the urban area north of the Saugeron river port is the Blaye Citadel from the 17th century, which as a fortification has an early Roman origin. In 1652, under the direction of field marshal and engineer Blaise François Pagan (° 1604 - † 1665), the first fortification construction began. The well-preserved citadel was built on the same site under the engineer François Ferry (° 1649 - † 1701) from 1680 and 1689, the work being under the control of the fortress builder Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban (° 1633 - † 1707). The citadel of Blaye, together with Fort Pâté (on the Gironde island of the same name) and Fort Médoc, have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since July 7, 2008 under the name “Verrou Vauban” . See also Vauban's fortifications .
The site of the historic fortifications rises on the east bank of the Gironde on a rocky hill 45 m above the river and extends over approximately 40 hectares north-west of the center of Blaye. The Romans made use of this exposed location with the 'Castrum Blavia'.
In later epochs, the Merovingian king of Aquitaine named Charibert II had a castle built for the benefit of his rule. There is no tradition of how the later Lord von Blaye, Wulgrin Rudel, came to dominate the territory and took over the Merovingian possessions. He removed Merovingian buildings and had the first medieval castle built on the hill above the Gironde in the 12th century, which is still preserved as a ruin "Château des Rudel".
Some of the structures in this castle, which dates back to the 12th century, were later used by Field Marshal François de Pagan for the first major fortification expansion due to their good condition. Later in the 17th century, "Château des Rudel" was also used as a citadel by the engineer François Ferry under the leadership of the General and Marshal of France, Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, fortress builder under King Louis XIV. It was Vauban, who, in his devotion to his king, proposed the expansion of Blaye into what was then a modern fortress.
Accordingly, a citadel was planned to protect the port of Bordeaux and built from 1680 over several years. The citadel complex consists mainly of four bastions and three demi-lunes , completed by extensive courtines . The complex was not completed until nine years later in 1689.
The bastions of the fortress are named as follows: Bastion des Cônes, Bastion du Château, Bastion du Port and Bastion Saint-Romain.
The access to the citadel via fixed bridges was only created in the late 18th century.
Photographic details
Passage Demi-lune before Porte Dauphine
Blaye Citadel: Porte Dauphine
Citadel of Blaye: Porte de Liverneuf (13th century)
Ruins of the Château des Rudel (12th century) from the south
View of the ruins of Château des Rudel from the southwest
West view ruins Château des Rudel with Porte de Liverneuf
Northern area of the citadel with Gironde
South-western fortress parallel to the Gironde
Square between Allée de la Poudrières and Rue des Minimes
Avenue du 144 Eme Régiment d'Infanterie
Attractions
- Blaye Citadel (fortress, from 17th century)
- Château des Rudel (ruin, 12th century)
- Porte de Liverneuf (gate building, 13th century)
- Tower de l'Éguillette (15th century)
literature
- Henri Stierlin: The Great Citadels and Fortresses , 2006, ISBN 978-3-8296-0237-2
- Anne Blanchard: Vauban. Paris 1996, ISBN 2-213-59684-0 .
- Jean-Denis GG Lepage: Vauban and the french military under Louis XIV , Jefferson (North Carolina) / London 2010.
- Reginald Blomfield: Sébastien le Prestre de Vauban, 1633–1707 , London, 1938.
Web links
- City website (French)