Auxey-Duresses () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Côte-d'Or Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.department in the

Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (; , sometimes abbreviated BFC; Arpitan: ''Borgogne-Franche-Comtât'') is a region in Eastern France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions, from a merger of Burgundy and Franche-Comté. The new region ...

region of eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Alcéens'' or ''Alcéennes''.

Geography

Auxey-Duresses is a wine-growing commune some 10 km south-west of

Beaune Beaune () is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Côte d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Lyon and Dijon. Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France, and the center of Burgundy wine production and business. The annua ...

and 11 km north of Chagny. Access to the commune is by the D973 road from Pommard in the north-east which passes through the length of the commune and the village and continues south-west to La Rochepot. The D17E comes from Saint-Romain in the west and passes through the village continuing east to

Meursault Meursault () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department and region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. Etymology The oldest attested form of the toponym Meursault dates from 1094, as ''Murassalt'' and ''Mussalt'', in a charter by t ...

. Apart from the village there are the hamlets of Melin in the south-west and Petit-Auxey west of the village. The north and south of the commune are rugged and heavily forested with the valley in the centre and west farmland.Google Maps
/ref> The ''Ruisseau des Cloux'' flows from the south-west through the centre of the commune from west to east where it continues to join the river

Dheune The Dheune () is a 71 km long river running through the Côte-d'Or and Saône-et-Loire departments of France. It flows into the Saône at Allerey-sur-Saône Allerey-sur-Saône (, literally ''Allerey on Saône'') is a commune in the Saône- ...

near Merceuil.

History

The Auxey valley was one of the first places where grapevines were planted in Burgundy during the 2nd century BC. when Auxey-le-Petit, which was dependent on Auxey-Duresses, was a high place of

Druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

worship. On Mount Mélian the remains of a large prehistoric enclosure can be found which was at that time occupied by the

Gauls The Gauls ( la, Galli; grc, Γαλάται, ''Galátai'') were a group of Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age and the Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). They sp ...

and the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

. During the

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

period the town grew and became known by the Latin name ''Alcius''. After the barbarian invasions of the 5th century AD the commune reached new heights thanks to the monks of the Abbey of Saint-Symphorien at

Autun Autun () is a subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the early Roman Empire by Emperor Augustus as Augustodunum to give a Ro ...

who built a church at Auxey-le-Petit in 696. It was rebuilt in the 10th century by monks from the

Cluny Abbey Cluny Abbey (; , formerly also ''Cluni'' or ''Clugny''; ) is a former Benedictine monastery in Cluny, Saône-et-Loire, France. It was dedicated to Saint Peter. The abbey was constructed in the Romanesque architectural style, with three churche ...

and it had a large vineyard in the village. The bell tower and the gate are Romanesque and date from the 12th century. These monks also left the "Moines Mill". At that time there were many mills in the valley and the hamlet of ''Melin'', another dependency of the commune, inherited the name. At the site of the medieval castle there is now the Church of Saint-Martin-Duresses Auxey whose steeple is made from

Tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock ...

. Inside there are some paintings, including a

triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided ...

relating the life of

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

. The present chateau belonged to the Marquis de MacMahon, one of whose descendants became

Marshal of France Marshal of France (french: Maréchal de France, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished ( ...

and Duke of Magenta.

Heraldry

Administration

List of Successive Mayors ;Mayors from 1934

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 304 inhabitants. Clos du moulina aux moines

Wine

Auxey Duresses blanc 2008 Domaine Henri Latour

Auxey-Duresses is one of the wine communes of the

Côte de Beaune The Côte de Beaune area is the southern part of the Côte d'Or, the limestone ridge that is home to the great names of Burgundy wine. The Côte de Beaune starts between Nuits-Saint-Georges and Beaune, and extends southwards for about 25 km ...

with 80 hectares of red wines (including 27 hectares in 1st Vintage) and 35.60 hectares of white wines (including 1.35 hectare in 1st Vintage).Burgundy wines website
/ref>

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has a number of buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments: *A

Lavoir A lavoir (wash-house) is a public place set aside for the washing of clothes. Communal washing places were common in Europe until industrial washing was introduced, and this process in turn was replaced by domestic washing machines and by laun ...

(Public laundry) at Petit-Auxey (19th century) *A Lavoir (Public laundry) at Meulin (1867) *A Lavoir (Public laundry) at an unnamed place (19th century) *A Lavoir (Public laundry) (19th century)

Religious heritage

The commune has several religious buildings and structures that are registered as historical monuments: *The Church of Petit-Auxey (12th century) *The Church of Saint-Martin (14th century). The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **A Painting: Saint Theresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross (17th century) **A Painting: Fainting of Saint Theresa of Avila (17th century) **A Painting: Saint Catherine of Sienna (17th century) **A Painting: Saint Hyacinthe (17th century) **A Painting: The dead Christ (17th century) **A

Retable A retable is a structure or element placed either on or immediately behind and above the altar or communion table of a church. At the minimum it may be a simple shelf for candles behind an altar, but it can also be a large and elaborate structure ...

(

Triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided ...

) depicting the life of the Virgin (16th century)Ministry of Culture, Palissy *A Cemetery Cross *The Cemetery (15th century)Ministry of Culture, Mérimée