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About 30km west of Laon, in hilly countryside on the far side of the forest of St-Gobain (a worthwhile cycling trip in itself), lie the straggling ruins of one of the greatest castles of the Middle Ages, Coucy-le-Chateau (May-Aug Mon-Fri 10am-12.30pm & 2-6.30pm, Sat 10am-12.30pm & 2-7pm, Sun 10am-7pm; March, April, Sept & Oct Mon-Fri 10am-12.30pm & 2-6pm, Sat 10am-12.30pm & 2-6.30pm, Sun 10am-6.30pm; Nov-Feb Mon-Fri 10am-12.30pm & 2-4.30pm, Sat 10am-12.30pm & 2-5pm, Sun 10am-5pm; 25F/?3.81). The power of its lords, the Sires de Coucy, rivalled and often even exceeded that of the king - "King I am not, neither Prince, Duke nor Count. I am the Sire of Coucy" was Enguerrand III's proud boast. The retreating Germans capped the destruction of World War I battles by blowing up the castle's keep as they left in 1917, but enough remains, crowning a wooded spur, to be extremely evocative. A small museum (daily: May-Sept 2.30-6.30pm; rest of year 2.30-6pm; free) in the tower at the Porte de Soissons, on the south side of the walled part of town, has a display of photographs showing how it looked pre-1917, which can be compared with today's remains from the vantage point of the roof. The entire modern village of COUCY-LE-CHATEAU-AUFFRIQUE is contained within the vast ring of walls, entered through the original gates, squeezed between powerful, round flanking towers; there is a footpath all around the outside. Bicycles can be rented from the tourist office , in the central square (May-Aug Mon-Fri 9.30am-12.30pm & 2-6pm, Sat closes at 6.30pm, Sun 10am-1pm & 2.30-7pm; Sept-April daily 10am-12.30pm & 2-6pm; tel 03.23.52.44.55), near the Porte de Soissons. Should you need a place to stay , try the Hotel Bellevue within the walls (tel 03.23.52.69.70, fax 03.34.52.69.79; 160-220F/?24-34; closed Jan). It's hard to get to Coucy-le-Chateau without a car, though several Laon-Soissons trains stop at ANIZY-PINON , which, if you're otherwise hitching, cuts the distance by about half - and there is an infrequent bus on to Soissons. If you continue into the nearby Foret St-Gobain , it's worth including ST-GOBAIN , 13km north of Coucy, in your itinerary. The original eighteenth-century glassworks - the firm is now a vast conglomerate - hides behind a classical facade, pretending it's nothing so vulgar as a factory (visits by appointment only, tel 03.23.52.84.75).
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