Autreville-sur-la-Renne

Location

Autreville-sur-la-Renne lies in the west of the Haute-Marne département in the Grand Est region, about 12 to 14 kilometres west of Chaumont and roughly 70 kilometres east-south-east of Troyes. The commune is made up of several hamlets, including Autreville itself, Saint-Martin-sur-la-Renne and Valdelancourt. All lie on the Renne, a stream about 20 kilometres long that rises within the commune and flows into the Aujon at Rennepont. The latest population figure is 386 (2023). The area is rural: around 58 per cent of the land is farmed, and about 41 per cent is forest.

Climate and what it means for wine lovers

Autreville-sur-la-Renne is not a champagne village in the strict sense. The commune has no classification as grand cru or premier cru, and the sources available mention no viticulture. The climate is temperate with fresh summers, averaging 10.2 °C with around 926 millimetres of rainfall a year (1971 to 2000). Meteorologically the village belongs to the Lorraine, Plateau de Langres, Morvan region, with raw winters and frequent fog in autumn and winter. Anyone travelling through the Haute-Marne will find here the hinterland far from the famous vine slopes.

“The climate is temperate with fresh summers, averaging 10.2 °C with around 926 millimetres of rainfall a year (1971 to 2000).

History

The village is old. As early as the 9th century it appears in the records under the name Altre Millana in Pago Ramense. In the Middle Ages several noble families shared the lordship, among them the House of Choiseul. The Abbey of Clairvaux also held rights and lands here. In 1833 the commune had 623 inhabitants. In 1854 a cholera epidemic claimed many victims.

One unexpected episode in the local story: the Italian-born businessman Victor Durigello opened a pasta factory in the 19th century, employing about twenty people. It closed in 1938. In 1972 Saint-Martin-sur-la-Renne, Valdelancourt and Lavilleneuve-au-Roi were merged into the commune. Lavilleneuve-au-Roi became independent again on 1 January 2012.

Villeneuve-Renneville-Chevigny in der ChampagneFoto: Roland45, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Sights

• The Château d'Autreville, an 18th-century building in the classical style, listed as a monument historique. Tradition has it that it was given to the Marquise de Pompadour.
• The village church of Saint-Pierre-ès-Liens in Autreville, built in the 19th century.
• The church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité in Saint-Martin-sur-la-Renne, parts of which date from the 12th and 17th centuries.
• The bridge over the Renne from the early 17th century, several wash-houses (lavoirs) and wayside crosses.

The commune lies away from the main roads. The A5 motorway runs a few kilometres to the south, with the nearest junction at Sermoutiers-Montsaon. It makes a convenient stop for travellers visiting Chaumont who would like to get to know the quiet countryside of the Haute-Marne.