COMMUNE DE CHÂTENOIS

The commune of Châtenois has a prestigious past: it was the first capital of the Duchy of Lorraine when, in 1048, the Emperor granted Gérard d?Alsace the hereditary title of Duke of Lorraine. The first in the line, Gérard de Châtenois (because he had his castle there) was the ancestor of the subsequent Dukes of Lorraine. He also gave birth to Europe?s greatest imperial and royal dynasty: the Habsburg-Lorraine.

Although the Castinian castle, located on the heights of the village in a place known as the "Haut-Bourg", was destroyed in 1634, there are still traces of the former castral presence here. However, the most important building bearing witness to the distant 11th century lies below, between the Haut-Bourg and the village it overlooks: the Priory, founded in 1069 by Duchess Hadwige of Namur. Located next to the church of Saint-Pierre, which was rebuilt in the 19th century on the site of a primitive Romanesque church, it was recently renovated thanks to the association Amis du Prieuré et du Patrimoine de Châtenois. A visit here is rich in history and mystery, including the never-found graves of Duchess Hadwige of Namur and Thierry II, son of Gérard of Alsace and founder of the city of Neufchâteau.

In an area nicknamed "Little Brittany of Lorraine", due to its high concentration of crosses and calvaries, Châtenois is rich in history.
It is also rich in gastronomy, with its famous Pâté Lorrain, traditionally celebrated each year at the popular Easter fair. The Association des Amateurs et Producteurs du Pâté Lorrain de Châtenois promotes and enhances the reputation of this culinary specialty, for which an application for a protected geographical indication was recently filed.

DATAtourisme France