Bar-le-Duc

Bar-le-Duc was the seat of the counts and dukes of Bar, its upper town clustered around their castle above the Ornain valley. Noble houses and richly ornamented façades gave the town a distinguished Renaissance character. In the church of Saint-Étienne, works by the sculptor Ligier Richier reflected the rich artistic life of the ducal court.

The town prospered in the sixteenth century under the dukes of Lorraine and Bar. Wine, leather and textiles contributed to its wealth, and its population grew despite the passage of troops and outbreaks of plague. French armies occupied Bar in 1632 during the struggle over Lorraine. In 1670 Louis XIV ordered the castle fortifications and the town's walls dismantled, leaving the ducal residence without its former defences.