Aisne - Aisne

Aisne is a department in the French region Picardy and has the serial number 02. In the north, the département borders on the département North and on Belgium, in the east to the départements Ardennes and Marne, in the south to the département Seine-et-Marne and as well as in the west to the départements Oise and Somme.

Regions

The department is divided into the following five arrondissements (administrative districts):

• Arrondissement of Laon
• Arrondissement of Saint-Quentin
• Soissons arrondissement
• Vervins arrondissement
• Arrondissement of Château-Thierry

places

• Saint-Quentin
• Soissons
• Laon is the prefecture (administrative seat) of the department
• Château-Thierry
• Ternier
• Chauny
• Hirson
• Villers-Cotterêts

Landscapes and Administration

• La Thiérache in the North ; a gentle hedge landscape.
• Le Vermandois also in the north; traversed by the swamps of the Somme.
• Le Laonnois in the center with the villages, which are mainly located in the river valleys; as well
• Le Soissonnais;
• Le Tardenois in the valley of the Marne with its main town Château-Thierry.

Other goals

background

language

getting there

mobility

Tourist Attractions

• Château-Thierry - There are four historical monuments in the city: Hôtel Dieu de Château-Thierry (14th century), Hotel de Ville (19th century), Remains of the castle from Château-Thierry (13th century), Saint-Crépin church (15th - 19th century); also: American memorial at the American Ainse-Marne Cemetery, which was part of the battle of Château-Thierry remembered during the 2nd Marne Battle (inaugurated in 1933).

• le Chemin des Dames - a striking ridge in the triangle between Laon, Soissons and Reims. This ridge follows the D 18 (Départementalstrasse 18); a way (chemin) out of time Louis XV originates. At Braye-en-Laonnois crosses the Canal de l'Oise à l'Aisne the Chemin des Dames almost 2.4 km long. On the way to the capital Paris lying down, the area was often the scene of armed conflicts: numerous memorials (museums, military cemeteries, remains of destroyed villages) commemorate this.

• La Ferté-Milon - is located 70 km northeast of Paris on the Ourcq. Historical monuments: Castle ruins, the Louis de ValoisCommissioned, Duke of Orléans, and was never completed; Ruin the Saint-Vaast church; Churches Notre Dame and Saint-Nicolas; Jean RacineStatue (created by the sculptor Pierre Jean David d'Angers. Jean Racine was born in 1639 La Ferté-Milon born.

• Guise - The place is east of Saint-Quentin on the banks of the Oise. Historical monuments: Château de Guise, the Familistère (Jean-Baptiste Godin stove factory from the 19th century), churches Saint-Médard and Saint-Pierre-Saint-Paul and the Hotel Warnet (from the 17th / 18th century).

• Laon - is located 130 km northeast of Paris and 45 km northwest of Reims and is the capital of the Aisne department. It has many medieval buildings and the Laon Cathedral. The old town on the mountain is the largest listed area in France. The city became a bishop around 500 Remigius founded. The cathedral is one of the most important early Gothic cathedrals in France and was built from 1155. Other significant historical monuments are the Episcopal and the Palace of Justice, the monastery church Saint Martin and the Templar Chapel from the 12th century and city ​​wall, of which 7 km with three city gates have been preserved (Porte d'Ardon, Porte des Cheminzelles and Porte de Soissons).

• Saint-Quentin - is the largest city in the Aisne department. The city lies on the banks of the Somme and the parallel one Canal de Saint-Quentin. Saint-Quentin was founded in Roman times and always played an important role in the wars against Germany between 1871 and 1945. One has been driving here since 1908tram. Historical monuments: basilica (12th - 15th century), Hotel de Ville in the late Gothic flamboyant style (Completed in 1509), Porte des Cannoniers, railway station, musée des papillons (Butterfly museum), Town houses in the style of Art deco, Théâtre Jean Vilar and the nature reserve on the Somme (Reserve naturelle du Marais de l'Isle).

• Soissons - The city is on the banks of the Aisne between Paris and Laon. Julius Caesar conquered Soissons in the 1st century BC BC The Merovingian king Clovis defeated the Roman Syagrius in the Battle of Soissons (486), which then became the capital of the Frankish Empire for 11 years before the seat of government was moved to Paris in 497. - Historical monuments: Soissons Cathedral built between the 12th and 14th centuries; Ruins of the former abbey of Saint-Jean-des-Vignes towers over the city with its western towers; other former abbeys (Saint-Médard, Saint-Léger, Notre Dame);

• Villers-Cotterêts - is at the source of the river Automne in the middle of forêt de Retz, 80 km northeast of Paris. - Historical monuments: Château de Villers-Cotterêts, built in 1532; Château Noue, Birthplace of Alexandre Dumas the Elder Ä.; church Saint-Nicolas and the town hall;

activities

To go biking

• The EuroVelo 3 passes the department. The railway cycle path is a beautiful section Ax vert de la Thiérache.

kitchen

• artichaut de Laon - Artichokes from Laon
• cider de Thiérache - Thiérache cider
• eau-de-vie de cider - Cider schnapps (cider grappa)
• haricots de Soissons - Fisoles from Soissons
• maroilles (AOC) - Maroilles: made from raw or pasteurized cow's milk; very old cheese from northern France; golden yellow, soft dough with a persistent, pleasant aftertaste; Bark yellow, orange to red depending on the ripeness;
• poiré - Leek (leek)

nightlife

security

climate

trips

literature

• Charles-Henri de Bossieu, Yves Garnier, Philippe Lacrouts (Ed.): Atlas départemental de la France. Larousse, 2004, ISBN 2-03-505448-6 ; 288 pages.

Web links