There are twelve sites in total, circumscribing most of present-day France.
Vauban Citadel, Arras The
Vauban Citadel, located in
Arras,
Pas-de-Calais, was built by Vauban from 1667 to 1672. The
Citadel has been nicknamed
La belle inutile (the beautiful useless one) by residents as it has never been directly involved in heavy fighting, and ultimately failed to prevent the Germans from occupying the city in either World War. Within the citadel on the side of
La Place de Manœuvre a small Baroque-style chapel was built. Outside,
Le Mur des Fusillés (the wall of the people executed by a firing squad) pays tribute to the 218 members of the
French Resistance shot in the citadel's ditch during World War II.
Citadel of Besançon The
Citadel of Besançon, in
Besançon,
Doubs, is considered one of Vauban's finest works of military architecture. The Citadel occupies 11 hectares (27 acres) on Mount Saint-Etienne, one of the seven hills that protect
Besançon, the capital of Franche-Comté. Mount Saint-Etienne occupies the neck of an oxbow formed by the river
Doubs, giving the site a strategic importance that
Julius Caesar recognised as early as 58 BC. The Citadel, built between 1668 and 1683, overlooks the old quarter of the city and the oxbow bend. Vauban returned to Besançon 17 times between 1674 and 1703 to oversee the progress of the work. The Citadel is built on top of a large syncline on a rectangular field crossed across its width by three successive bastions (enclosures, or fronts) behind which extend three plazas.
Place forte, Mont-Dauphin The site of the
place forte is located in
Mont-Dauphin,
Hautes-Alpes. Built in 1692 by Vauban on the head of a plateau, it follows an orthogonal plan and contains various military buildings dating from the 16th through 18th centuries.
Citadel and city walls, Mount-Louis The citadel and city walls of
Mont-Louis are located in
Mont-Louis,
Pyrénées-Orientales. They were built in 1679 in order to facilitate trans-border crossings with Spain, and contain a square citadel and fortified town walls with 25 sentry posts.
Ville neuve, Neuf-Brisach The
ville neuve in
Neuf-Brisach,
Haut-Rhin is located close to the German border with France. Built from scratch between 1698 and 1703, it is one of Vauban's last works, intended to guard the border with Germany (then the
Holy Roman Empire). It is the only example of Vauban's “third fortified system”, with a double town wall.
Citadel and city walls, Saint-Martin-de-Ré A Citadel and city walls designed by Vauban between 1681 and 1685 are located in
Saint-Martin-de-Ré,
Charente-Maritime. The citadel, ringed by six bastions and a dry moat, was built in only 40 days.
Watchtowers, Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue Two watchtowers designed by Vauban and his student are located in the commune of
Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue,
Manche. They face each other across the Saint-Vaast Bay, with the taller, two-story watchtower located on the island of
Tatihou. Built in 1694, the watchtowers have a truncated-conical shape, and are surrounded by bastion fort holding chapels, barracks, and powder magazines.
Sites at Villefranche-de-Conflent Fort Libéria, Cova Bastera, and the city walls of
Villefranche-de-Conflent,
Pyrénées-Orientales are also part of the world heritage site. Vauban's alterations to the town wall began in 1669, Fort Libéria was built in 1679, and the Cova Bastera was installed after Vauban's death, in 1707. Two sites initially considered were removed from the final list: A château in
Bazoches,
Nièvre, and the citadel and walls surrounding
Le Palais in
Belle-Île-en-Mer,
Morbihan. == Gallery ==