Municipality in Vosges
Population: 7,700
Specialities: nonnette de Remiremont (gingerbread cake), loriquette (biscuit), pâté de truites des abbesses (made from trout fillets marinated in white wine).
Personalities: Julien Absalon, Steve Chainel (cycling). Clément Noël (world slalom champion, born in Remiremont). Christian Poncelet (deputy mayor and president of the Senate). Léon Werth (writer). Nadil Baha (footballer). Chantal Goya (singer, spent part of her childhood in Remiremont), Emmanuelle Riva (actress),
Culture: Venetian Carnival (March), Champs Golots, Saint-Nicolas, Les Kiriolés (Whit Monday), Brioche Festival, Science Festival (June), spring and autumn jumble sales.
Sport: FC Remiremont Saint-Étienne (football). Team N'side (cycling, National 2).
Events: Corrida des abbesses (December). Rallye des vallées, Infernal Trail 100%.
Economy: once a textile town. Today, it is home to businesses such as Laboratoire Lohman et Raucher, Robé Médical, MA industrie and Althoffer industrie. The Éloyes industrial estate is located 10km north of the town. The site is home to major industries such as Thiriet and Minolta. Tourism.
Labels: town in bloom (3)
Websites and social networks: www.remiremont.fr, www.tourisme-remiremont-plombieres.fr
REMIREMONT AND CYCLING
Remiremont is the birthplace of Julien Absalon, the two-times Olympic mountain bike champion in 2004 and 2008, as well as of Steve Chainel, French cyclo-cross champion in 2018. Although he never took part in the Tour de France during his eight seasons with the pros, Chainel became one of the stars of the documentary series that Netflix devoted to the Tour de France in 2023 and 2024. He is also a consultant on Eurosport. Julien Absalon, for his part, remains the benchmark in mountain biking, with two Olympic titles to his name, as well as five World Championship titles, seven World Cup victories and fourteen French Championship titles in the discipline. Throughout his career, he has refused to switch to the road despite numerous requests to do so.
SIGHTS:
- Notre Dame church, former Saint-Pierre abbey church
Foundation: 620 for the abbey.
Construction: 7th to 15th centuries.
Style: Gothic.
History: The abbey was founded around 620 by Saint Amé and Saint Romary, vassal lords of Chlothar II, on an ancient Roman site known as Saint-Mont. Saint Romary donated his property to the abbey. The two missionaries were joined by the founder of the Carolingian dynasty, Saint Arnulf. Saint Romary established two communities: one of monks in the valley and one of nuns on Saint-Mont. In the 11th century, the nuns settled in the valley and preserved the relics of the founders. They abandoned the rule of Saint Benedict at the end of the 13th century and obtained secularisation from the Pope, becoming canonesses. In 1682, an earthquake caused the vaults of the abbey's transept to collapse. King Louis XIV, who occupied the Duchy of Lorraine, made a donation to rebuild the abbey church.
Characteristics: Three churches have been built one on top of the other over the centuries: the Carolingian edifice (7th-9th centuries), the Romanesque edifice (11th century), and the Gothic period at the end of the 13th century, when most of the church of the chapter of the noble ladies of Saint-Pierre was built. The current church has a basilica floor plan and is built of sandstone. The nave, with its central nave, is flanked by single aisles separated from the central nave by four pillars that originally led to the space reserved for the canonesses. The west transept features a turret with a hipped roof. The central Gothic nave has four bays and is cross-vaulted, supported by engaged columns. The nave is rather sober and austere. To the east, the chevet reveals the presence of the crypt, of which only the small openings are visible at ground level.
Listed as: Historical Monument in 1983.
- Abbey palace
Construction: 1752 to 1756
Style: Classic
History:The earliest mention of Remiremont's abbey residence can be found in letters written in 1384 by the canons of Remiremont to their cardinal. The abbey residence was falling into ruin when, in 1616, Catherine of Lorraine had it rebuilt. In 1682, a violent earthquake damaged the abbey and the palace. In 1738, Anne-Charlotte de Lorraine, the new abbess of Remiremont, had major repairs carried out on the abbey residence. It was so dilapidated that it was no longer safe to live in: the walls had been cracked on all sides since the earthquake of 1682. A victim of several fires at the end of the 18th century, the palace was ravaged during the Franco-Prussian war of 1871 and restored under the Third Republic.
Characteristics: The current palace was built by Anne-Charlotte of Lorraine, abbess of the abbey between 1738 and 1773. She commissioned the work from Jean Nicolas Jeannesson, architect of the church of Saint-Sébastien in Nancy. The classical-style palace has several distinct facades: the fan-shaped facade overlooking the abbess's private garden; the facade serving as the entrance to Place de l'Abbaye, which was completely remodelled after the Revolution; and the facade opening onto Place de Mesdames, where you can see a beautiful cobbled courtyard. The two-storey building comprises richly decorated rooms with high ceilings and tall windows.
In terms of architectural style, Remiremont's abbey palace is similar to the Château de Lunéville, home of the Dukes of Lorraine.
Listed as: Historical Monument in 1965.
- Charles de Bruyères Museum
Opening: 1913
History: The museum is housed on two floors in an eighteenth-century mansion that lawyer Charles de Bruyères (1823-1905) bequeathed to his home town, along with his collection of paintings and historical memorabilia relating to Remiremont Abbey. Himself from an ancient noble family, he had assembled a number of portraits of canonesses, abbesses, dukes of Lorraine and aristocrats.
Characteristics: The collections are devoted to painters from the North of France (with a large collection of 17th-century Dutch painters), 19th-century French painting (Courbet, Ziem) and painting from the Vosges. There is also a fine collection of glassware and ceramics.
- Charles-Friry Museum
Opening: 1970
History: The house that houses the museum is a former canons' house. Built in 1750 in the area surrounding the abbey church, it was inhabited by the Countess of Briey, who was the last dean of the Remiremont chapter. Charles Friry (1802-1881) moved there in 1833 following his marriage. A magistrate, he was also an artist, art lover and collector. In 1970, the house was converted into a diocesan museum. In 1985, the town of Remiremont acquired the diocesan museum, which was awarded the Musée de France label. It was also awarded the Maison des Illustres label in 2021.
Characteristics: Painting, sculpture, engraving and the decorative arts are represented in these collections, which cover ancient art from the 15th to the 18th centuries and modern art from the 19th and 20th centuries. In painting, the centrepiece is The Waidmann Hurdy-Gurdy Player, painted by Georges de La Tour, probably around 1640. It is thought to have been discovered in an attic in Nancy, then bought by Charles Friry in 1846, when it had not yet been identified. The painting is now on display in the room that once housed the studio of painter Pierre Waidmann.
- Fort du Parmont
Construction:Built on the Parmont massif.
History:Fort of Parmont or Fort of Remiremont, built on the Parmont massif, overlooks the town. It forms part of the defensive curtain of Haute-Moselle built by General Séré de Rivières between the strongholds of Épinal and Belfort. Abandoned since 1960, it is now being restored by volunteers belonging to the Parmont Fort Preservation Committee. With its exceptional view over Remiremont and the Moselle and Moselotte valleys, and its semi-liberty goats, this unusual fort is open to visitors.
- Venetian Carnival
Since 1996, Remiremont's Venetian Carnival has been part of the town's 14 centuries of history.
Every year in March, 400 costumed guests invade the town, where abbesses and canons have left their prestigious mark.
Sequins, feathers, hats, masks, marquises and eccentrics, the costumed costumes enter the dance for four days of enchantment, bringing dreams and mystery to the thousands of visitors in a setting of greenery and rich heritage that is the City of Canons.
TO EAT:
- Nonnette de Remiremont
This small, slightly domed, iced gingerbread cake has been around since time immemorial. Its origins remain unclear, but it is certain that it already existed in the time of the canonesses. In 1751, Duke Stanislas' chef d'office mentioned the existence of flavoured gingerbread in Remiremont. However, it wasn't until the early 20th century that the nonnette acquired its letters of nobility. In the heyday of gingerbread, it was sold in many delicatessens and enjoyed with relish in the salons of the Parisian bourgeoisie.