Fort De Condé

So many objects you can visit in the Laon region have to do with memories, signs or rests of wars in the last centuries.

Today - the weather dry, clouded sky, a temperature 10°c lower than yesterday - was an excellent day to visit Fort de Condé. This fort is located on high grounds close to the famous route D18cd, aka Chemin des Dames. It was built between 1877 and 1882.

It's described as: "... Built on an impressive scale (12.3 acres within the perimeter walls), the fort has a pentagonal layout dissimulated under 10 feet of soil and vegitation. Built entirely in dressed stone, it combines functional architecture with a genuine concern for elegance ..."

After all those war periods there was not so much rested from the image evoked by that description. But from 1979 a lot of work is done to restorate the complex. From May 2012 till the last day of August there's an exposition about the 30 years of restoration work of François and Pierre Pottier. They discovered the Fort in a pityful state and swiftly founded an association which "... With the help of volunteers and the army's technical resources and manpower, rescued the fort from the state of neglect into which it had fallen ..."

Today we visited that exhibition of extraordinary photographs showing just how much has been achieved. On the picture you see the armored door in the entrance of the first exhibition hall ... ;)