I. The Roots

A thousand years of nobility: the origins of the House of Salm

The history of the Principality of Salm does not begin in 1751, under the paneling of the princely treaty. Its roots go back to the 12th century, when Count Henri III of Salm — descendant of an Ardennes lineage — had a stone castle erected from 1205 above the village of La Broque, in the Bruche valley. This fortress, called Château de Salm, gives its name to a territory that chroniclers will henceforth call Salm-en-Vosges.

The reason for this Vosges location? The Benedictine abbey of Senones, founded around the year 640 by Gondelbert, bishop of Sens. To protect his property, the bishopric of Metz assigned him an avowé - an armed protector. The house of Salm obtained this office and made it the basis of its Vosges fortune. Gradually, protection turns into lust.

The coup d'état of 1571

The abbey's wealth - forests, iron mines in Framont, meadows and mills - whets all appetites. In 1571, the Lorraine count John IX of Salm and his cousin Frédéric, wild count of the Rhine, seized by force temporal power over the entire abbey territory. On the death of John IX, his niece Christine brought her share of the dowry to the Duke of Lorraine - and in 1623, the Rhinggraves branch reached the rank of princes of the Empire after the conversion to Catholicism of Philippe Othon.

II. Sovereignty

1751: The birth of an independent state

In 1736, the Treaty of Vienna redistributed the cards: Lorraine was promised to France. For PrinceNicolas-Léopold ofSalm-Salm, this is a serious time. A skillful diplomat, he engaged in delicate negotiations with the representatives of Louis XV and Stanislas Leszczynski. On December 21, 1751, the treaty was signed: the Principality of Salm-Salm was officially born, a sovereign state under the Holy Roman Empire. Senones, in the hollow of the Rabodeau valley, becomes the capital of this singular state—a few thousand souls, immense forests, renowned forges. Small in size, big in ambition.

III. The Court

Three princes, one capital: the golden age of Senones

In forty-two years of existence, the Principality has had three sovereigns who made Senones a princely setting worthy of the great European courts.

Châteaux and mansions rise along the streets of Senones — these 18th century facades in pink sandstone are still visible today. The Principality is endowed with all the institutions of an accomplished State: justice, finances, army, commerce, and even a compulsory and free school — a measure of remarkable modernity.

IV. The Spirit of the Places

Senones Abbey: an intellectual beacon in the heart of the fir trees

In the heart of Senones shines an intellectual center of rare intensity: the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Pierre. The man who is its soul is called Dom Augustin Calmet, abbot from 1728 to 1757. He brings together more than 15,000 works — a collection that attracts thinkers from all over the continent. It was at his invitation that Voltaire visited him in 1754, staying several weeks in Senones, working in the abbey library with a freedom that he himself described as delicious.

The abbey church, the pink sandstone cloister and the abbey palace with its grand staircase constitute a very coherent whole. Senones has been classified as a Small City of Character® since November 2020.

V. The Memory of Time

Chronology of a princely destiny

• 12th century
  Foundation of the castle of Salm

  Henri III erected the fortress of La Broque. The house of Salm becomes attorney of the abbey of Senones.

• 1571
  Signorial coup d'état

  John IX and Frederick seize temporal power over the abbey territory, which they place in joint ownership.

• 1623
  Elevation to the Principality of the Empire

  Philippe Othon, converted to Catholicism, is elevated to the rank of Prince of the Empire by Ferdinand II.

• 1751
  Birth of the Principality of Salm-Salm

  On December 21, Nicolas-Léopold made Senones the capital of a sovereign state under the Holy Roman Empire.

• 1754
  Voltaire in Senones

  The writer stayed in the princely capital and worked in the library of Dom Calmet.

• 1779
  Visit to Salm Castle

  Princes Charles-Alexandre and Guillaume-Florentin visit the ancestral ruins — an inscription in the stone keeps the memory of them.

• 1791
  The prince's exile

  Constantin-Alexandre leaves Senones on August 15 for Anholt Castle in Westphalia.

• March 2, 1793
  Annexation to the Republic

  The Convention, on the report of Lazare Carnot, united the Principality with the Vosges department. End of a State after 42 years of existence.

VI. Twilight

1793: the end of a world

The Revolution represents an existential threat to small landlocked states. The economic blockade imposed by the Convention deprives the Salmians of their outlets: they can no longer sell their surplus wood and metals. Exhausted, the inhabitants petitioned the Convention to request their attachment to the Republic. On March 2, 1793, Dubois-Crancé presided over the decree — on the report of Lazare Carnot — which united the former Principality with the Vosges department. Castles and estates are sold as national assets, the collections partent for Épinal. The princes of Salm-Salm still live at Anholt Castle in Westphalia.

VII. Living Heritage

Senones today: strolling through a princely capital

Classified Small City of Character® in 2020, Senones retains its 18th century facades in pink sandstone, its castle ruins, its town hall — a former princely building — and the residence of Prince Charles. In summer, volunteers in Principality guard costume parade to the sound of fifes and drums. A few kilometers away, the Salm Castle — listed as a Historic Monument since 1898 — offers its romantic ruins on the ridge between Alsace and Lorraine, and the inscription engraved by the princes in 1779 is still legible there.