Things to see and do Craonne

A few kilometres after the village exit, a sign indicates «Old Craonne», there is nothing, green meadows, groves… old Craonne was completely razed during the First World War. It was rebuilt 500 metres lower thanks to Sweden's financing. At the location of the old village and above many cellars was erected a arboretum of remembrance which counts fifty-seven species such as tulip of Virginia, giant Redwood, vineyards, bucolic… Currently managed by the National Forestry Office - NFB -The arboretum is, on the one hand, a place of memory and allows, on the other hand., amateurs of botany to discover a remarkable flora. It was in the cemetery of old Craonne that the famous writer Yves Gibeau wanted to be buried.

This statue of Napoleon I am the work of Georges Thurotte, who sculpted it in 1974. It recalls the victory acquired on 7 March 1814 by the French armies in Craonne on the Russian armies and prussian, then commanded by General Blücher. The statue was raised on the location of the mill of Vauclair, which served as an observatory during the battle. The wedding of the statue with the landscape is magnificent.

Put yourself in a soldier's shoes, and relive, in nature, the offensive of the French army of 16 April 1917 in Picardy. But this time, without weapons. The aim was to pay tribute to the nearly 30 000 men who left their lives in the battle. Every year, on 16 April, the march of remembrance begins at 5 a. m. in Craonne. Carry a flashlight. A single memory exercise.