A few centuries later, the Counts of Luxembourg chose a safe place to protect their land against the powerful archbishops of Trier. They found it in Grevenmacher, that was the place where the road going from the city of Luxembourg to Trier meet with the one going from Trier to Thionville. Here a strong fortress was built, probably on the orders of Count Henry V. In 1252, this same count made Grevenmacher a city.