Soissons, France

Abbey Saint Jean des Vignes

The main reason for stopping in Soissons was to revisit Chateau de Coucy.  I recommend reading The Distant Mirror by Barbara Tuckman. It is a historical novel covering the dynasty of Coucy and life during medieval times.             

The day we walked around Soissons was a big wedding day.  We saw a bride and groom parading around town in their VW bug and another couple being driving in a Rolls Royce.  They drive all around the town in a procession with lots of honking and horn blowing.  Noisy and festive.

Happy bride and groom

Popular church where many weddings take place.

The Abbey Saint Leger was turned into the Museum of Soissons.

Interior view of the Abbey Saint Leger, Soissons

In the museum are pictures of what the town looked like after WWI

Painting by Louis Philastres dealing with murder.  Quite a bit of the artwork in this museum dealt with macabre subjects.

The children of Soissons are raised on the famous story of the Vase of Soissons

We visited Saint Jean des Vignes which was first built towards 1220 and dismantled from 1805 onwards.  The stones were sold off as building material.  It’s been around 12 years since we last saw Soissons.  They have continued to excavate and hence opened more of Saint Jean des Vignes for us to explore.

Back view of Abbey SaintJean des Vignes.  We listened to a band practicing in the building to the left.  They certainly needed the practice.

We found some interesting characters hanging out in the armory.

Another view of the armory

The gallery used to be the centre for monastic life.

From there we drove to Chateau de Coucy for a revisit.  In 1228 Chatau Coucy was one of the largest fortified enclosures in France.  It had 33 towers!  In the 14^th Century the chateau was transformed into a luxurious palace.  It was absolutely criminal that in 1917 the German army destroyed much of this historical site while retreating.

I’ve included a few pictures for you to get an idea of the immensity of the original chateau.  If you are ever in the area I recommend a visit.

Entrance to Chateau de Coucy

A model of what the structures at one end looked like

Photo taken before 1917 when the Germans destroyed the Chateau

Part of a tower

View of the countryside from the Chateau

Original stairs that haven't been restored.

View of remaining walls

Artist rendition of what this area looked like.

More remaining walls

Photo taken before 1917

Remaining walls

Remains of the original spiral staircase going to the lower basement.

View of the countryside

View from outside of the Chateau.  Very impressive

WWII memorial we found alongside the road.