The Tour aux Puces

800 years of history

The Tour aux Puces awaits you. It has stood here proudly for 800 years. How beautiful it was in those days, young and colourful! Nowadays, a few imperfections bear witness to its history. The stones are not quite so smooth. The colour has faded. It becomes excited at the sound of your voices outside its door. Come in, come in, it whispers shyly.

Getting there

A TETRADECAGON

WITH MULTIPLE FACETS

This emblematic tower with 14 sides is built on a circular foundation measuring between 2.5 to 3 m high in which many authors have imagined the remains of a Carolingian chapel. In fact, the tower was the keep of a fortress built by the Counts of Luxembourg in the 11th century and corresponds to the perimeter of the present-day Castle Courtyard. It has in turn served as accommodation and a last refuge in the event of an attack, a powder magazine, a prison and finally a museum in 1905.

MYSTERIOUS

ORIGINS

Emperor Charlemagne is said to have stayed here during his many visits to his palace in Thionville; a princess came to a grisly end here devoured by ferocious and avid small fleas and who knows what else.

The romantic images of these legends cannot hide a much less noble and morbid truth: the origin of the name the Tour aux Puces is much less prosaic and is the result of a translation error between the Luxembourg dialect and French.
From “peetzsturm” it became the Tour aux Puces.

ARCHEOLOGICAL MUSEUM

OF THE PAYS THIONVILLOIS

Now a museum, it holds many treasures! The archaeology and the history of the Pays Thionvillois will hold no more secrets for you. Prehistoric populations, Celts, Merovingians await you and transport you back in time to their everyday lives. The highlight of the museum? A panoramic view over the magnificent tombstones (unearthed in 1902 and 1974) covered by glass flooring. The latest arrival is a beautiful Apollo which will make many blush!