The best walks and hikes around Fromelennes

A mighty and beautiful tree!

The construction of Fort Charlemont began in 1555 by order of Emperor Charles V. It dominates Givet and the Meuse valley. The fort and its defences have been modified several times. Between around 1600 and 1675, the Spanish expanded the fort. In 1678, it was conquered by the French army of King Louis XIV. The town fell to France in 1697. Vauban was commissioned to expand the complex and improve the works. In 1874, several forts on the border were modified based on the ideas of Séré de Rivières, including this fort. The bastions were rebuilt and an underground staircase with several hundred steps was dug into the rock. The staircase connects the fort to a railway tunnel. In this way, the fort could be supplied with ammunition, soldiers and equipment, all out of sight of the enemy and invulnerable to enemy artillery fire. In 2009, the French army transferred the fort to the municipality of Givet.

Givet belongs to the region of the French Ardennes and to the Calestienne. The pointe de Givet, consisting of Givet and its surroundings, is the only part of France where Walloon is spoken. Until the end of the 17th century, the area was part of the Southern Netherlands.

Albert I, born on 8 April 1875 in Brussels (Belgium) and died on 17 February 1934 in Marche-les-Dames (Belgium), was King of the Belgians from 1909 to 1934. Duke of Saxony, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and heir to the Belgian crown from 1905 to 1909, he became the third sovereign of Belgium after the death of his uncle Leopold II. On 2 October 1900, he married Elisabeth in Bavaria, with whom he shared a humanist and pacifist vision of society. The king and queen quickly formed a popular couple and gave a modernised image of the monarchy, whose style they renewed. Coming from a lineage with Germanic roots and the husband of a German princess, the king chose in 1914 to defend his country, which had been created neutral, and to fight against the German invasion, affirming the Belgian character of his dynasty. From the First World War onwards, Albert became the subject of a veritable myth that extended far beyond the Belgian borders, garnering the warlike nicknames of Soldier King or Knight King. After the armistice of 1918, the king frequently intervened in Belgian political matters. In 1919, while the Constitution limited his powers, he succeeded during the Lophem interview in convincing the most eminent Belgian politicians of the need to adopt pure and simple universal male suffrage. The king advocated the effective equality of the two national languages, the recognition of freedom of association, the extension of social legislation and the development of science. In terms of international relations, he made long official and private trips abroad: the United States in 1919, Brazil the following year, India in 1925, not forgetting the Congo in 1928 and 1932 and finally Syria and Palestine in 1933. A mountaineering enthusiast, with several important ascents to his credit, he died in 1934 while climbing in the Meuse Valley in Belgium. His eldest son succeeded him under the name of Leopold III.

nice view

Old ruin

information point

panoramic point with beautiful views over the beautiful landscape