Credits: @CMN Pierre Barrot
Caption: Montdauphin
Credits: @CMN Pierre Barrot
Caption: Montdauphin Les remparts
Credits: @CMN Pierre Barrot
Caption: Montdauphin Caserne Rochambeau
Credits: @CMN MarcTulane
Caption: Montdauphin - Arsenal
Credits: @CMN Pierre Barrot
Caption: Montdauphin Arsenal
Location type
Environment
Mountain
General presentation
Mont-Dauphin, Vauban stronghold listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an altitude fortification built by Vauban from 1693.
The fort is one of the 12 major Vauban sites listed in 2008 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It is also a commune in Hautes-Alpes (05) located near the small town of Guillestre, in the SOUTH Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur region.
Behind its pink marble ramparts, you will see the barracks where Louis XIV's soldiers lived, the watchtowers on the sheer cliff where they watched, the powder magazine, the arsenal where they kept guns and powder.
You will also find an unusual village where 170 inhabitants live all year round.
From the rampart, a panoramic view of several valleys surrounded by peaks and mountains.
Location Condition Type
Well maintained
Location History
Vauban, war engineer and visionary. Sébastien Le Prestre, Marquis de Vauban (1633-1707), is General Commissioner of the fortifications of Louis XIV. He is the craftsman of the king's “meadow”, protecting the kingdom with a double line of fortifications along the borders. We owe him the creation or improvement of more than 300 strongholds, as well as numerous memoirs on France's internal and foreign policy.
An instrument of deterrence. Following the raid carried out in 1692 by Victor-Amédée II, Vauban proposed to improve the defense of the border of the Alps. The square is named Mont-Dauphin in honor of the king's son, the Grand Dauphin. Completed in the 19th century, it will never be besieged. In 1713, the Italian border moved away, removing any strategic dimension from it. The only weapon to deplore in three centuries was the bombardment of a wing of the arsenal during World War II.
An instrument of deterrence. Following the raid carried out in 1692 by Victor-Amédée II, Vauban proposed to improve the defense of the border of the Alps. The square is named Mont-Dauphin in honor of the king's son, the Grand Dauphin. Completed in the 19th century, it will never be besieged. In 1713, the Italian border moved away, removing any strategic dimension from it. The only weapon to deplore in three centuries was the bombardment of a wing of the arsenal during World War II.
Dominant style
Louis XIV
Specific styles
Fortified
Materials
Stone