Arcis-sur-Aube

Location

Arcis-sur-Aube lies in the Aube département, about 27 kilometres north of Troyes and roughly 50 kilometres south of Châlons-en-Champagne. The town sits at an average altitude of 92 metres on the banks of the Aube, which rises at Auberive, runs for 249 kilometres and joins the Seine at Marcilly-sur-Seine. The small Gironde stream also flows through the commune.

The area of 9.45 square kilometres is mainly agricultural: a good half is arable land (53.1 per cent), and just under 14 per cent is woodland. The climate has an oceanic character, with an average annual temperature of 11.0 °C and just under 700 millimetres of rainfall, measured at the nearest weather station in Dosnon.

Arcis-sur-Aube and Champagne

Arcis-sur-Aube has neither grand cru nor premier cru status, and the sources name no significant vineyard area or champagne houses for the town. Anyone stopping here does so as a traveller passing through the Aube, which after the Marne is one of the most important growing areas in Champagne. The well-known wine villages of the Côte des Bar lie further south and south-east. Arcis makes a good stopover for exploring Troyes and the growers' villages of the region.

“Bishop Pierre de Troyes, who was probably born in Arcis, founded the town's hospital.On 20 and 21 March 1814 the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube was fought on the commune's land.

Getting here is straightforward:

• By car: A26 motorway, exit 21 (Vallée de l'Aube)
• By bus: line 7 between Troyes and Mailly, stop in front of the Salle des fêtes
• By train: TER Grand Est line C03 from Troyes to Châlons-en-Champagne, with a connection on to Reims

History

The name of the town appears as early as the 2nd century as Artiaca in the Itinerarium Antonini, and a Merovingian coin gives it as Arciaca. In the 6th century the hermit Saint Victor lived here. In the Middle Ages Arcis belonged to a succession of noble families, including the counts of Ramerupt and the lords of Montréal. Bishop Pierre de Troyes, who was probably born in Arcis, founded the town's hospital.

Paul Goerg Champagner Trauben

On 20 and 21 March 1814 the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube was fought on the commune's land. The revolutionary politician Georges Danton was born here in 1759. Today the town has 2,785 inhabitants (as of 1 January 2023). Since 1976 it has been twinned with Gomaringen in Baden-Württemberg.

Sights

For a stop between two wine visits, three places are worth a look:

• the 18th-century château with its large park, both listed as a Monument historique
• the 16th-century church of Saint-Étienne, also a Monument historique
• the Danton monument on the Place de la République

If you want to taste champagne, you are better off planning visits to the growers of the Côte des Bar or the houses in Troyes, and using Arcis-sur-Aube as a quiet stop on the Aube.