Varennes-en-Argonne

Commune in Grand Est, France

(2020–2026) Philippe Fosseprez^[1]Area11.81 km² (4.56 sq mi)Population633 • Density54/km² (140/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal codeElevation144–264 m (472–866 ft)
(avg. 195 m or 640 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Varennes-en-Argonne (French pronunciation: [vaʁɛn ɑ̃.n‿aʁɡɔn], literally Varennes in Argonne) or simply Varennes (German: Wöringen) is a commune in the Meuse department in the Grand Est region in Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 639.

Geography

Varennes-en-Argonne lies on the river Aire to the northeast of Sainte-Menehould, near Verdun.

History

Varennes is most notable as was the ending point of the Flight to Varennes. In June 1791, Louis XVI and his immediate family made a dash for the nearest friendly border, that of the Austrian Netherlands in modern Belgium (Queen Marie Antoinette being a sister to Leopold II, Archduke of Austria and Holy Roman Emperor). In Varennes, Louis and his family were arrested by Jean-Baptiste Drouet, the local postmaster, who had been alerted by a message received from nearby Sainte-Menehould. It is said that at Sainte-Menehould, where the escaping party had spent the previous night, a merchant alerted the town authorities of their presence after recognizing the King's face on an Assignat as Louis tried to buy something from a shop. The royal family was returned to the Tuileries in humiliating captivity, and Louis and Marie-Antoinette were subsequently guillotined in 1793.

Located in the Zone rouge, Varennes was completely destroyed during the First World War but was reconstructed afterwards. The Pennsylvania Memorial, a monument for volunteers from 28th Division Pennsylvania in the First World War, was erected in Varennes during the Interwar period.

• 
  Arrest of Louis XVI and his Family in Varennes, 1791.
• 
  Ruins of Varennes in 1918.

Points of interest

• Arboretum de Varennes-en-Argonne

See also

• Communes of the Meuse department
• Flight to Varennes

References