In 1221, the first castle of Montmédy has been built on top of a hill by Lord de Chiny. Montmédy became soon the capital of his territory - later it belonged to Luxemburg, Burgundy, Austria and Spain.
The original castle was replaced with a fortress by Karl V in the 16th century. After Marville and Stenay had been occupied by the French, 30,000 soldiers, including King Louis XIV, attacked Montmédy in 1657, whilst 756 were defending it. They held it for 57 days and surrendered only after the death of the governor Jean V of Allamont.
The military engineer Vauban advanced the outer fortifications, the moats and the walls after the siege of 1657. The citadel has also been used as a stronghold during 1870 war against Prussia and both World Wars.
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