The fortified castle of Sedan, in the Ardennes (Grand-Est), was elected on Wednesday September 13 “the favorite monument of the French” by the public among 14 remarkable sites, for the 2023 vintage. “A fairy tale castle, a panorama of military architecture,” described Stéphane Bern, host of the show “Le Monument Favorite des Français” on France 3, whose public awarded the largest fortified castle in Europe.
Located in the Ardennes, it succeeds the Cherbourg transatlantic station and the Le Redoutable submarine located in Normandy, which were chosen by Internet users in 2022. Bought by the municipality in 1962, the fortress which has already welcomed more than 100,000 visitors for the year 2023 has been classified as a historic monument since 1965.
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Among the cultural highlights in the running were also the Notre-Dame de Fourvière basilica in Lyon (Rhône), the Cluny abbey (Saône-et-Loire), the citadel of Port-Louis (Morbihan), the Château de Blois (Loir-et-Cher), the citadel of Ajaccio (Corsica), Fort Saint-Louis (Martinique), the Domaine de Chaalis (Oise), the library of France (Paris), the Haras du Pin (Orne), the Coubre lighthouse (Charente-Maritime), the national square in Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne), the Trois-Mâts Belem (Loire-Atlantique) and the arenas of Vaison-la-Romaine (Vaucluse).