Neufchâteau-des-Vosges

Neufchâteau stands near the meeting of the Meuse and Mouzon, on the border of Lorraine and Champagne. Duke Thierry II founded a new castle and fortified town here in the late eleventh century, securing a crossroads for Lorraine. Medieval trade enriched its merchants, especially those dealing in cloth. In the eighteenth century, the town became the seat of a bailiwick, and prosperous families built fine stone houses around its squares.