Mouzon

À Carignan

A - The fortifications Voir sur la carte

Until it was finally delisted in 1842, Carignan was surrounded by a wall with ten bastions and two gates, which had been erected as of 1681.

 

The curtains and bastions were surmounted by a crenellated wall which is partially preserved near the old guardroom of the Burgundy Gate.

 

The gates disappeared in the last century, but seven bastions still remain, in more or less good condition.
The three bastions on the northern side in fact date back to the 16th century and have underground blockhouses on several floors, which are currently inaccessible.

 

Visitors can walk along the ramparts, following the signs.

À Mouzon

B - The city of Emperors

Louis XIV considered the Mouzon region to be ‘the loveliest place in the kingdom’. And you can see why when you approach this small city, lying like an island within the whimsical Meuse, where the river twists and turns, dividing into several arms. A city of kings and emperors: Caesar, Hadrian, Charlemagne, and Otto the Great all came here!

Sightseeing

The Burgundy Gate is a fine example of 12th-century military architecture. A tower that never loses its direction… while it doesn’t point towards modern-day Burgundy, it does face Belgium which at the time belonged to Charles the Bold…

Walking

A guided circuit following the town’s fortifications is available from the tourist office.

À Mouzon

C - The abbey Voir sur la carte

Late 12th century… Culture, confined within the abbeys, such as the Benedictine monastery of Mouzon, opened up to the outside world. Ways of thinking evolved and this phenomenon was also seen in art. Whereas the Romanesque is a style of balance, Gothic expresses verticality. The abbatial church of Mouzon was a fine example of this new trend.

Information: Only the church and the abbey gardens, in the French style, are open to visitors: the abbey itself has become a retirement home.

À Mouzon

D - The woollen felt museum

A fun-filled and original way to learn about the oldest textile in the world, from its origins to the most innovative industrial uses, including unique contemporary artistic creations.

The visit can also include manual felting workshops for young and old.

More information : www.mouzon.fr/musee.asp

À Mouzon

E - Reception and tourist information site Voir sur la carte

À Bazeilles

F - Museum: Maison de la Dernière Cartouche

Sedan was to be the tomb of the Second Empire. Caught in a net in 1870, Napoleon’s army was to lose its dreams of grandeur. In Bazeilles, a visit to the ‘Maison de la Dernière Cartouche’ (House of the Last Cartridge) is a moving experience. Even though a century and a half have passed, you can still sense the drama of this last pocket of resistance. Napoleon III signed the capitulation in Donchery. The following day, the Republic was proclaimed.

Tip

The tourist office has published a guide to the ‘Circuits of Remembrance’, following in the footsteps of battles around Sedan. A bullet buried in a wall provokes strong emotion: these marks of history have a far greater impact than speeches.