Located in the citadel looking high over Montmédy, the Fortification Museum illustrates the sites and fortified buildings in Meuse from the prehistoric era to the 18th century.
The Meuse department has always been criss-crossed by migratory movements, requiring the locals to defend themselves. It retains traces of a number of defence systems created over the last 5,000 years, such as Roman oppida, city walls and medieval fortified churches, as well as modern fortifications. Understanding attacking and defensive strategies and defining a stronghold, using a series of maps, models, reconstructions and photographs, are just some of the activities on offer at Montmédy’s Fortification Museum.
Founded in the 13th century, the town of Montmédy has been a major fortress frontier in the Spanish Netherlands since the 16th century. The fortifications were overhauled by Vauban after the town was taken by Louis XIV, and later by the general Séré de Rivières between 1875 and 1880.
Extend your museum visit by exploring the rampart circuit!