The best traffic-free bike rides around Laons

The charm of Nogent le Roi.

The Moulin de Mormoulins is a watermill located on the Eure River in the hamlet of Mormoulins. This mill dates back to the 18th and 19th centuries and is a listed historical monument. You can admire the old stone building, the wooden wheel, and the canal that diverts water from the river as you pass in front of the mill. The mill is surrounded by green fields and trees, creating a peaceful and relaxing atmosphere.

The first mention of the existence of the Church of Saint-Martin de Nonancourt is a 12th-century charter, but the original building probably dates back to the 7th or 8th century. The bell tower that now occupies the middle of the façade dates from the reconstructions of 1204. During the Hundred Years' War, the church was largely destroyed, like many buildings in the region. The side aisles, nave, and choir were rebuilt in the 16th century. The Chapel of the Virgin, also known as the Chapel of the Rosary, was also added. The Church of Saint-Martin contains numerous works of art, some of which are listed: neo-Gothic and Renaissance furnishings, including the centerpiece, the pulpit, a veritable wooden lacework; a variety of statuary, a 16th-century organ case and finally an enigmatic fresco discovered during recent works in 2001. The stained-glass windows of the church constitute a truly remarkable collection, both in terms of their number (26 in total) and their quality. The lower windows of the nave are the oldest pieces, dating from the 1500s, while the upper windows date from the 1520s and 1530s.

Very beautiful pond

Built in the 15th century on the foundations of a chapel whose origins can be traced back to a papal bull from Pope Alexander in 1142, Saint Apollonia was worshipped there.

The Notre-Dame Priory, founded around 1128 by Rahier de Muzy, was dependent on Coulombs Abbey and housed a community of Benedictines. This community was apparently never very large, as Eudes Rigaud's repeated visits in the 13th century only recorded four monks. In 1255, the monks no longer lived together at the priory due to lack of space. By 1269, the buildings were in too poor condition to accommodate the archbishop. Adjoining the convent buildings, the choir of the parish church of Saint John the Baptist was used by the monks. This 12th-century church, built "in a single heap," underwent several embellishments in the 18th century, but on July 21, 1794, it was probably converted into a saltpeter works, along with the entire priory. The church reopened for worship on March 22, 1795. A campaign of renovations restored the buttresses of the west facade with bricks at the end of the 19th century. The bell tower, damaged in 1944 during the fighting on the Avre, was restored in 1959. The monument was closed for another period from 1939 to 1950. The bells were electrified in 1985. Heating was installed in 1990. A restoration project for the entire building was adopted by the municipality in 2003. The roofing work—repairing the roof box—and the complete restoration of the north facade—raising the apron of the openings by approximately 40 centimeters, repairing all the buttresses and old lime plaster—were completed in 2006. The Church of St. John the Baptist has been listed on the supplementary list of historic monuments since December 2005. A competition to select a master glassmaker was held in April 2009. The winning candidate, Coline Fabre, was entrusted with the task of creating The stained-glass windows throughout the building. Four bays were installed in the spring of 2010 and eight in the summer of 2014, so that all bays on the north, east, and south facades were fitted with stained-glass windows. Rehabilitation work on the east and west facades and the installation of the stained-glass windows on the west facade began on November 20, 2018, and was completed at the end of June 2019. The stained-glass windows were inaugurated on September 13, 2019. Since February 2021, the bells have once again rung daily at 12:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.

large bird reserve and nautical activities

The church is located near a departmental road and is surrounded by a cemetery. Church oriented with a longitudinal plan composed of a single nave. The entrance to the building is via a porch body. An annex building is attached to the north side of the choir. The western facade of the porch body rises on two levels delimited by a projecting cornice. It is pierced by a low-arched door as well as a rose window in the upper part. The bell tower, of polygonal plan, is positioned on the ridge of the roof. It is covered with a polygonal spire surmounted by a ridge cross and has two roof eaves. The building is covered with a gable roof. That of the annex building ends in a hip. The side walls are pierced with arched bays and supported by buttresses. The annex building is pierced by a quadrangular window and door. The buttresses of the choir bear witness to the Romanesque origins of the church. The nave, built in the 16th century, was enlarged in the 19th century by a bay to the west. The bays of the building were re-pierced around 1822.