Attractions and Places To See around Soulaines-Dhuys - Top 5

At Brienne-le-Château, the Via Francigena crosses the story of a famous character: Napoleon Bonaparte. Indeed, from 1779 to 1784, Brienne welcomed the young Bonaparte to its royal military school, which has now become a museum dedicated to Napoleon I and the French campaign. During the 1814 campaign, the city became the hub of the two combined armies of Silesia and Bohemia that marched towards Paris. On 29 January, during fierce fighting, French troops recaptured the ruined city and even came close to capturing Blücher, who was then living in the castle. Built in the eighteenth century, the castle, residence of the Loménie de Brienne, can be seen from the city below, but is not open to the public.

This museum is housed in the former military academy, which was founded in 1776 to train children of impoverished nobility for military service. The young Napoleon Bonaparte was trained there from 1779 to 1784. Using film fragments, administrative documents, tin soldiers and explanatory drawings, the museum shows the various facets of the man who went through all the military ranks before finally having himself proclaimed emperor. It shows him alternately as a public figure busy exercising control over his appearance, as a father in the intimacy of family life, as an exceptional strategist and military leader at the end of his career, during his French campaign.

The emperor gave 1,200,000 francs to the city of his youth. Part of that money was used to build the town hall, inaugurated in 1859. On the town hall is a pediment with a medallion depicting Napoleon and an eagle above it. In front of the building is a statue of Bonaparte in a school uniform of the time: a blue suit with trim, jacket and short red trousers

This building was badly damaged in 1940 by a fire that destroyed much of the city, but has been restored to its original state. The church, where Napoleon made his first communion, is built of stone from the Champagne region. It has a 14th-century nave and a 16th-century choir with choir girth. Look at the original images in the Renaissance stained glass windows: on the left the story of Noah, on the right the legend of Saint Crispin and Saint Crispinian. Also note the bell-shaped holy water font (16th century), the baptismal font and the choir screen (18th century).

Château de Brienne-le-Château is a magnificent palace from the second half of the 18th century, located in the commune of Brienne-le-Château in the Aube department, in the Grand Est region. The castle is partly registered as a historical monument. The castle was inaugurated in 1778. The castle has a classical style and is surrounded by a large park with an orangery, a lavoir and a glacière. The castle is also called “the little Versailles of the Aube”. The castle also has a historical link with Napoleon Bonaparte, who studied there at the military school. In 1814, he stayed there for two nights during the Battle of La Rothière, where he almost managed to surprise the Prussian general Blücher in the castle1. In 1805, Napoleon tried to buy the castle for his mother, but the young Countess de Brienne refused him. The castle is now a psychiatric hospital.

Brienne lies on the banks of the Aube river in a plain called la Plaine de Brienne. The Counts of Brienne dominated the history of the area for a long time. They were one of the most important noble families of medieval France and produced statesmen, diplomats and crusaders. Johann von Brienne (1169/74–1237). He was chosen by the French King Philip II as husband and regent for the heir to the Kingdom of Jerusalem. From 1210 to 1212 he was king of Jerusalem. He then became the father-in-law of the Roman-German Emperor Frederick II, with whom he became enemies and also fought against him as the Pope's general. From 1229 he ruled Constantinople for nine years. Brienne-le-Château became known as the training site of Napoleon Bonaparte, who studied here for five years (May 1779 to October 1784) as a boarding school student at what was then the Royal Military School. To complete his studies, he left Brienne-le-Château and finished it at the École Militaire in Paris. On April 3, 1805, he visited Brienne-le-Château again on his trip to Italy for the coronation, now already as Emperor of the French. On January 29, 1814, the Battle of Brienne was fought near Brienne, which ended with a victory for France under Napoleon Bonaparte against the Russians and Prussians under Field Marshal Blücher. Sources: Wikipedia