Brijancon Fortress, a World Heritage Site in Vauban, France

A military engineer to King Louis XIV of France, Vauban began to oversee military works to consolidate the kingdom at the age of 34. Three of the 160 fortresses he built or restored are in the Hautes Alps. They are: Château de Quay, Montdauphin and Briancon. The latter two were listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 2008. Due to the natural topography of Briancon, Vauban could not follow any existing model. He designed staggered vertical city fortifications and proposed the establishment of a fortress belt to enhance the defense of the town. The small town in the Briancon Fortress, which was built in the ancient Roman period, is particularly attractive for viewing. Even though it was planned and built so long ago, the drainage system in the city does not feel backward even by today's standards. The area where the Briancon Fortress is located has a recorded history dating back to the conquest of Gaul by Caesar the Great. It was ruled by the Ligurian lord Tannus, who was originally an opponent of Caesar, but later reached a settlement to continue to rule the territory. When Augustus, the successor of Caesar, suppressed the uprising of the Alpine tribes in Gaul in the Alps, Marcus Julius Cordius, the son and successor of Tanus, initially remained independent, but later reached an alliance with Augustus, and the family continued to rule the area and became part of the Roman Empire province until it was annexed by Nero and became part of the Alpine Province of Cotia. In 1040, Briancon and the surrounding valleys fell into the hands of the Count of Alban. Until 1713, according to the Treaty of Utrecht, Briancon and the surrounding valleys were all transferred to the jurisdiction of Savoy Province, and became part of modern France. In 1815, Briancon was able to successfully resist the siege of the Allied forces with the help of the solid fortress designed and built by Vauban. The new city of Briancon was built on the open space outside the fortress. It can be imagined that when the fortress was built, all the houses in the new city were open space, and all were within the killing range of the crossfire. #OverseasTravel #WorldHeritage #WorldHeritageCulturalRelics #EuropeTravel #Europe #Alps #Fortress #france #unesco #unescoworldheritage #briançon