The best walks and hikes around L'Échelle

A very pleasant walk with a few climbs, including one in a grassy area requiring suitable footwear.

The date 1577 is engraved above the door. Since its foundation, the castle has been owned by the same family, the Rimberts or Rymberts, although the surname has been passed down from father to daughter. Because this family did not emigrate, it survived the French Revolution without losing its property. Although citizen Rimbert, a former nobleman, was ordered to remove part of the fortifications, loopholes, battlements and gun ports from the fortified house during its most turbulent period, in 1794, Robert de Rimbert, a former soldier and invalid pensioner, was before the Revolution of 1789, at the beginning of the Revolution even asked by the inhabitants to command the National Guard. The castle originally had two towers on opposite corners and two rectangular watchtowers. In 1925, restoration work resulted in the widening of the windows and the creation of a second floor, with pedimented windows recessing into the base of the roof. The building was placed on the monument list in 1927. The house is now a private residence and is open to the public by appointment.

This church was dedicated to Saint Peter (Saint Pierre). Simon, nicknamed Petrus (rock), was a fisherman on Lake Genesareth when he - together with his brother Andreas - was called by Jesus Christ to be a "fisherman of men". According to the Catholic understanding he is the highest apostle, and the two millennia long line of popes - currently Francis - are in his successor. On statues and paintings Peter is almost always shown with two keys in his hand, this attribute refers to the Bible verse in Matthew: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; what you will bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and what you will loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven ”(Chapter 16, verse 19). Together with Paul, Peter is also known as the "princes of the apostles", their common feast day in the saints' calendar is on June 29th.

Saint Martin, to whom the church of Aubigny-Les-Pothees is dedicated, is - next to Saint Nicholas - probably one of the most popular saints of all. The memorial day of the former officer in the Roman army is November 11th. On the night after the famous “coat sharing”, when he surrendered half his army cloak to a freezing beggar, Jesus Christ appears to him in a dream. He then converted to Christianity and was later elected Bishop of Tours (France) - initially against his will.

This church is very striking because of its tower. Some parts of the current church appear to have been repaired in the 13th century. The choir may have had a pointed arch, as is still the case in the northern arm of the transverse chief. The classical church hall indicates that certain changes took place in the 17th century, probably after the fire in the village in 1642. The sundial on the south side of the nave bears the year 1611. Source: at the church on information board

Two Merovingian cemeteries from the sixth and seventh centuries were discovered on the territory of the municipality. During the Hundred Years War the village was besieged by the Armagnaks. Aubigny-les-Pothées was burned to the ground in 1643 at the Battle of Rocroi. At the beginning of the First World War in 1914, the village church served as a simple hospital. The church was built in 1851. Source: Wikipedia

A first castle, probably founded in the 13th century, adjoined the Potées estate, which belonged to the Reims cathedral chapter. A group of Armagnacs settled there in the 15th century and over time spread across the region. Duke Antoine de La Marche, who was governor of Sedan from 1599 to 1640, became lord of L'Echelle through his marriage to Anne de Maucourt in 1594. He rebuilt the castle to give it a more up-to-date appearance. The square stilt in the northwest corner dates from this period. Antoine de La Marche des Contes died in September 1740 at the age of 74. On September 28, 1642, at dawn, Spanish troops sacked the village and attacked the castle. The walls of the castle still show the traces of the cannon balls. In 1730, L'Échelle Castle was acquired by the Reims Cathedral Chapter, and the building was subsequently rededicated as a farm. During the French Revolution, the building was sold to Simon Pottier, the hat maker from L'Echelle. He then handed over a large part of it to the community, installed the town hall as well as the school and the teachers' accommodation. Part of the residential buildings of the north wing have been converted into a school history museum, for the nostalgic community (the elementary school from the 1900s to 1960s), with the inkwell, the sergeant major pens (which preceded the pens), the slates, etc. Source: according to Wikipedia

The village was founded at the beginning of the 13th century by the cathedral chapter of Reims Cathedral. During the Franco-Spanish War (1635-1659), the site was completely destroyed in the Battle of Rocroi in 1643. The crosses in their own shape are fascinating. Source: according to Wikipedia