Rochambeau Tercentenary International Symposium

Who was Marshal de Rochambeau?

Jean Baptiste de Rochambeau, future Marshal of France, was born in Vendôme in 1725, and
became famous for his military contribution to the Independence of the United States of America with the victory at Yorktown in October 1781.
The elegant statue of this “child of Vendôme” graces the Place Saint Martin in his hometown,
installed in June 1900 in Vendôme in the presence of the American ambassador, and it wasn’t until 1902 that a copy was installed in Washington’s Square Lafayette; another copy is located in Paris near the Palais Galliera and another in Yorktown, in the United States, where Rochambeau defeated the English and largely ensured the Independence of the young American nation.

In January 1942, the German authorities dismantled and melted it down, and it wasn’t until June 1974, thanks to a plaster cast preciously preserved at the Château de Blois and the financial support of the American Association of Cincinnati, that it reappeared on its current site. This goes a long way to explaining the excitement of the American tourists who pass through Vendôme, sometimes even going as far as the Thoré La Rochette cemetery where the Maréchal is buried

A castle to discover

The central part of the château, originally built in the 16th century, was remodelled in the 18th century by Marshal de
Rochambeau, with the addition of two large square pavilions and Mansard-style roofs.
The château has belonged to the Vimeur de Rochambeau family since the 16th century.
The Marshal’s bedroom has remained
unchanged since his death in 1807.