Le château des Fées ou Château du Waridon
Short hike that gives access to the ruins
The Château des Fées, or Château du Waridon, is a medieval fortress whose ruins are located on the upper course of the French Meuse at the place called Le Waridon (commune of Montcy-Notre-Dame) in the department of Ardennes and whose origins date back to between the 9th and 11th centuries.
The “Château des Fées” is located at an altitude of 175 metres, on a natural height called the Waridon, which overlooks the Meuse at the point where two streams, the Fontaine and the Soiru, meet, north of Charleville-Mézières. The mound, oval in shape and measuring 8,50 metres high, is separated from the rest of the plateau by a ditch. The south-western part of the site has been largely damaged by recent quarrying. The exact circumstances of the creation of the site remain uncertain; however, it is likely that a Roman settlement located on the other side of the Meuse gradually extended onto the slopes of the Waridon. At the end of the 933th or the beginning of the XNUMXth century, a fortification was built by Bernard, Count of Porcien. In XNUMX, the site was taken and destroyed by Richer, Bishop of Tongres. Only the mound has been excavated, revealing the remains of a primitive wooden building, which occupied the top of the mound, but only the imprints of a few post holes remain.
Subsequently, a rectangular stone construction (17,50 x 9,80 m), similar to an aula, seems to have replaced the wooden structure. A large part of the preserved walls are built in a herringbone pattern.
Three small annexes were added on either side of the aula. A fire layer, in which crossbow bolts, arrowheads, Andenne-type ceramics, and coins were found, suggests that the final destruction of the site dates back to the first half of the 12th century.
This site has now been transformed into a leisure site, but it is possible to access part of it using a small path.
The “Château des Fées” is located at an altitude of 175 metres, on a natural height called the Waridon, which overlooks the Meuse at the point where two streams, the Fontaine and the Soiru, meet, north of Charleville-Mézières. The mound, oval in shape and measuring 8,50 metres high, is separated from the rest of the plateau by a ditch. The south-western part of the site has been largely damaged by recent quarrying. The exact circumstances of the creation of the site remain uncertain; however, it is likely that a Roman settlement located on the other side of the Meuse gradually extended onto the slopes of the Waridon. At the end of the 933th or the beginning of the XNUMXth century, a fortification was built by Bernard, Count of Porcien. In XNUMX, the site was taken and destroyed by Richer, Bishop of Tongres. Only the mound has been excavated, revealing the remains of a primitive wooden building, which occupied the top of the mound, but only the imprints of a few post holes remain.
Subsequently, a rectangular stone construction (17,50 x 9,80 m), similar to an aula, seems to have replaced the wooden structure. A large part of the preserved walls are built in a herringbone pattern.
Three small annexes were added on either side of the aula. A fire layer, in which crossbow bolts, arrowheads, Andenne-type ceramics, and coins were found, suggests that the final destruction of the site dates back to the first half of the 12th century.
This site has now been transformed into a leisure site, but it is possible to access part of it using a small path.
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