Troyes

Location

Troyes lies in the southern part of Champagne, in the valley of the Seine and right in the middle of the Paris Basin. It is a good 140 kilometres from Paris, around 107 kilometres as the crow flies to Reims and about 83 to Épernay. Troyes is the administrative seat of the Aube département and had 62,088 inhabitants on 1 January 2023. To the east, the urban area borders the Parc naturel régional de la Forêt d'Orient with its large lakes. The ground beneath is chalk, the rock that shapes the whole of Champagne.

The Bouchon

The historic heart of the city is known as the Bouchon, which means cork. Seen from the air and on the map, its outline really does recall a champagne cork. The shape goes back to a city boundary of the late 13th century and is defined by canals that make use of arms of the Seine. The name itself, however, is only documented since the second half of the 20th century.

History

Troyes was the main town of the Celtic Tricasses, and the Romans called it Augustobona. In the 10th century the city grew into the centre of a county whose lords took the title Count of Champagne at the start of the 12th century. Under them, Troyes hosted two of the six famous Champagne Fairs, where merchants from all over Europe traded cloth, silk and goods from the East. The scholar Rashi and the poet Chrétien de Troyes also worked here. In 1420 the Treaty of Troyes was signed, intended to settle the succession to the French throne during the Hundred Years' War. On 24 May 1524 a great fire destroyed a large part of the city. The rebuilding explains why so many houses from the 16th century still stand today.

Sights

• the Gothic cathedral and ten further churches, many of them with stained-glass windows
• one of the largest collections of 16th-century half-timbered houses in France
• 42 buildings in total protected as Monuments historiques
• the canals and lanes of the Bouchon, which are easy to explore on foot

Troyes holds the designation Ville d'art et d'histoire. If you enjoy shopping, you will also find plenty of factory outlets here: brands such as Lacoste and Petit Bateau have their roots in the city.

Binet Champagner stamp

Troyes and champagne

Troyes itself is neither a grand cru nor a premier cru, and you will not need to go looking for champagne houses here. But the city lies in the Aube département, which includes the vineyards of the Côte des Bar, where Pinot Noir is the main grape. From Troyes the wine villages of the south are easy to reach, and the city makes a good base for a trip off the beaten track around Reims and Épernay.

“Troyes is the administrative seat of the Aube département and had 62,088 inhabitants on 1 January 2023.

It is also worth staying for the food. Troyes is known for andouillette, a robust sausage, and for prunelle, a plum liqueur. Both suit the hearty cooking of the region and turn a visit into more than a stopover.