Rocroi

Simon planned our itinerary so we could stop at Rocroi for lunch while travelling from Troyes to Tervuren. 

Its claim to fame is that it is one of Vauban's famous star forts [link], and we always have to stop for them.

The church dates from 1844.

It's very small, and packed full of solid looking dark stone buildings. Once upon a time it was a border town, swapping from French possession to Spanish, or more laterly, Prussian possession. Now it is somewhere you stop to have a picnic lunch under the covered marketplace in the central square, and try (unsuccessfully in our case, because it was Sunday) to buy some of the local cheese.

It was Francois I who first had a fort erected on the site, in 1545. Earthworks in a pentagon form were constructed and five star points radiated out. The garrison lived within the pentagon, which also protected their stores. This fort withstood attacks from the Spanish on several occasions before it fell. Then it was sold back to the French who set about improving the defences again. To no avail as it fell to the Spanish, then returned to France as part of the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659.

Vauban, the military architect working for Louis XIV, got his hands on the place in 1675 and created the current heavy stone arrangements. 

The garrison housed 400 men at the time of the Napoleonic wars in the early 19th century and in 1815 they were overwhelmed by a Prussian force of 10 000. The Prussians captured it again when they invaded France in 1871. 

With the development of high explosive artillery shells this type of fort became obsolete and the garrison was withdrawn in 1888.

Today the two entry gateways have been demolished to facilitate exit and entry, and it is just a charming historic village in the French Ardennes.