Place Alexandre-Israël with the church Saint-Jean-au-Marché as well as the narrow streets Rue Molé on the left and Rue Champeaux on the right, Troyes, Champagne, France
Some background information:
With a population of roughly 62,000, the city of Troyes is the capital of the French department of Aube. It is also the centre of the agglomeration community Troyes Champagne Métropole, which is home to more than 170,000 inhabitants. The town is located on the Seine river about 140 km (87 miles) south-east of Paris and it is also situated in the southern part of the Champagne wine region.
Prehistoric evidence has been found in the Troyes area, suggesting that the settlement may have developed as early as 600 BC. Celtic grave-mounds have been found near the city, and Celtic artifacts have been excavated within the city grounds. Troyes developed as early as the Roman era, when it was known as Augustobona Tricassium and stood at the hub of numerous highways, primarily the Via Agrippa. It led north to Reims and south to Langres, while other Roman routes from Troyes led to Poitiers, Autun and Orléans.
From the Gallo-Roman city of the early Empire, some scattered remains have been found, but no public monuments, other than traces of an aqueduct. By the Late Empire the settlement was reduced in extent. It was referred to as Tricassium or Tricassae, the origin of its French name Troyes. From the 4th century AD, the people had become Christian and the city was designated as the seat of a bishop. However, it took several centuries before Troyes gained importance as a medieval centre of commerce.
In 451, the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains, also called the Battle of Troyes, between the army of the Roman general Flavius Aetius and the Visigothic king Theodoric I on the one side and the Hun troops of Attila on the other side was fought nearby. As a result, the Huns withdraw from Gaul, however, the battle’s tactical outcome is still disputed.
Troyes’ first cathedral occupied the site of the current one. Following depredations to the city by the Normans, the counts of Champagne chose Troyes as their capital at the end of the 9th century. The town remained the capital of the Province of Champagne until the French Revolution at the end of the 18th century, when it was replaced as the capital by the city of Reims.
In 1285, when King Philip IV of France united Champagne with the royal domain, the town kept a number of its traditional privileges. In 1420, the Treaty of Troyes was signed in the city, by which Henry V of England was betrothed to Catherine, daughter of Charles VI of France. Under the terms of the treaty, Henry V was to succeed Charles, to the detriment of Charles’ son with the same name. But the high-water mark of Plantagenet hegemony in France was reversed when the Dauphin (the legal heir to the throne), afterwards King Charles VII, and Joan of Arc recovered Troyes in 1429.
In 1524, a great fire destroyed much of the medieval city, although the city had numerous canals separating its different quarters. However, Troyes was rebuilt quickly. But in the following decades, its commercial importance decreased, as much of France’s trade was shifted from the land route to the sea route. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the city changed from a former centre of commerce to a centre of the textile industry. At the same time it became a heartland of the Huguenots. That’s why Troyes was hit hard by the annulment of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, which had granted the Huguenots substantial rights in the nation.
In 1814, at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Troyes was chosen as a strategically significant place by the Austrian army. In the course of the 19th century, the city’s population increased and a train station was built. In 1933, even an airport was established, but this airport has lost most of its former importance by now. However, still important for the city is its rank as a centre of champagne production. Of course it is only coincidence, but if you have a look on Troyes’ old town on a map, it has the shape of a champagne cork.
Today, Troyes mainly lives from tourism and also champagne production. The textile industry has become less important, although the company Devanlay still produces garments for the fashion label Lacoste. The old town of Troyes is well-worth visiting. Many half-timbered houses, mainly from the 16th century have surivived and it’s really a pleasure to stroll through the streets and also taste some local specialties like Andouillette or Chaource cheese.
