You might remember our first foray into Ardennes folklore with thearticle dedicated to the legends of the Ardennes Valley ? The nuts from Fromelennes, the Three Brigands of Givet, Madame de Cormont or even the mysterious Mawhot of the Meuse… But there are still many other stories than those mentioned in the previous article, and the Ardennes forest has not finished whispering its secrets.
Today, I'm taking you to clearingwhere the forest almost closes in around the last houses. Direction aggressivenessperched at an altitude of over 300 meters, on the roof of the Ardennes. This forest village with its slate roofs, nestled in 4,000 hectares of woods, is a true an open book on the Ardennes imaginationBeneath every stone, behind every oak tree, lies a story…
I have selected some for you three, for a stroll between chivalric epic, medieval mysteries et popular devotion.
The legend of the Bayard jump, from Vireux-Molhain to Hargnies
You are probably familiar with Bayard , the illustrious steed of the Four Sons of Aymon . This fabulous mount, son of a dragon and a serpent according to the ancient chansons de geste, is capable of carrying all four brothers on its back at once to escape the wrath of Charlemagne . A mythical figure that gallops throughout the Ardennes forest, from Bogny-sur-Meuse to Dinant, passing through… Hargnies.
The legend that is told today is…
Pursued by Charlemagne 's troops , the Four Sons of Aymon —Renaud, Allard, Richard, and Guichard—gallop at full speed through the Ardennes forest. On Mont Vireux , in Vireux-Molhain , tradition tells of a fortress that served as their hideout. But the imperial soldiers are approaching dangerously…
Cornered, the valiant Bayard takes a running start. His hooves strike the rock of Mont Vireux, and in a prodigious leap , he crosses the Meuse valley, traverses the air and lands heavily several kilometers away, in Hargnies.
The instant it landed back on the plateau, one of its hooves struck the stone with such force that it left its imprint engraved in the rock, splitting the block in two . The mark of the jump would have remained visible for centuries, a silent witness to the passage of the magical steed.
This is how Hargnies entered into the great epic of the Four Sons of Aymon , this legendary cycle which, it is said, resonates throughout the Ardennes forest at each summer solstice , when the neighing of Bayard can still be heard among the trees…
Tips
Hargnies celebrates its deep connection with horses every year during the Horse Festival , held on the first Sunday of July . The Ardennes draft horse , a distant and earthy descendant of the spirited Bayard, is given pride of place. A truly lovely way to keep the legend alive!
The legend of the counterfeiters of Plein-Mont
If you leave the village and venture into the Hargnies-Laurier state forest , heading towards the Belgian border, you might stumble upon a rocky spur between the Houille valley and the Mont-Vireux stream . There, barely visible beneath the moss and ferns, stand two sections of dry-stone walls , remnants of a forgotten fortress: Plein-Mont castle.
And here is what tradition says…
We are at the end of the 13th century , during the reign of Philip the Fair . In the heart of the immense Ardennes forest, where no one ventures without trembling, a nameless lord — or rather, whose name has been erased — has a discreet fortress built , lost between two valleys, protected by a formidable defensive system: two ditches and two dam walls.
Officially, it's just another fortified castle , guarding the borders of the kingdom. But in secret, in the vaulted cellars, ovens burn that have nothing to do with a baker's . Day and night, counterfeit money is minted there : florins, deniers parisis, deniers tournois … The lord of Plein-Mont grows rich before his very eyes, circulating his counterfeit currency as far as the Champagne fairs.
At the time, the punishment for counterfeiters was terrifying : they were thrown alive into large cauldrons of boiling water or oil . But who would go and hunt down these brigands deep in the Ardennes forest, where even the king's sergeants dared not venture?
For decades, the scheme operated. Then, at the beginning of the 14th century , the castle was destroyed by fire . Archaeological excavations have uncovered traces of the fire on the walls… But no one knows whether it was the king's soldiers who finally discovered the truth, or whether divine wrath fell upon these venal men.
What is certain is that the ruins of Plein-Mont retain their mystery . When you pass by, listen carefully: perhaps you will still hear the muffled hammering of the hammers on the coin dies…
Quick hiking tip
The ruins of Plein-Mont can be discovered during a pleasant hike in the Hargnies-Laurier state forest . Don't forget your good shoes; the terrain is uneven and the moss slippery. More information on our walks and hikes in the heart of the Ardennes Valley.
The legend of Saint Roch and his dog
At the entrance to Hargnies , coming from Vireux-Wallerand , a small chapel stands on the right. Modest but touching, it is dedicated to Saint Roch , the patron saint of Hargnies . And behind these stone walls lies one of the most beautiful legends of medieval Christendom.
This is the story that is passed down there…
In the 14th century , in Montpellier , a young man named Roch was born . From a wealthy family, he distributed all his possessions to the poor upon reaching adulthood and went on a pilgrimage to Rome , staff in hand and scallop shell on his hat.
But Italy was then ravaged by the Black Death . From town to town, Roch stopped at the bedside of the sick, traced the sign of the cross over them , and miraculously cured the plague victims . His reputation grew, until the day he himself fell ill , struck by the terrible scourge.
Refusing to be a burden, Roch dragged himself out of the city and isolated himself in a forest to die alone. It was there that the most endearing character of the legend appeared : a dog . Every day, this faithful dog came to the weakened saint, a loaf of bread stolen from his master's table between his teeth , and left it for him as a token of friendship. Intrigued, the master followed his dog and discovered the saint : he took him in, nursed him back to health, and Roch miraculously survived.
This is why, even today, Saint Roch is always depicted with his faithful dog at his feet, and a loaf of bread in the animal's mouth . You will also recognize him by the wound on his thigh that he sometimes reveals, a testament to the plague defeated.
But why Saint-Roch in Hargnies?
At the beginning of the 17th century , a terrible plague epidemic ravaged the entire Ardennes Valley. Villages emptied, cemeteries overflowed. In their distress, the inhabitants of Hargnies turned to Saint Roch , the saint who protects his faithful against contagion. They built him a chapel to beg him to drive the scourge away from their clearing. And the miracle is said to have worked.
Since then, several chapels dedicated to Saint Roch have been scattered throughout the Ardennes Valley — all moving testimonies of a time when faith and fear of the epidemic went hand in hand.
Hargnies, village of legends
As you will have gathered, Hargnies is not just a peaceful forest village renowned for its charcuterie and its Horse Festival . It is also a true crossroads of the Ardennes imagination , where the clatter of Bayard's hooves still echoes, where the hammering of counterfeiters can be heard under the moss, and where popular devotion continues to watch over the entrance to the village.
So the next time you're crossing the Hargnies-Laurier state forest , keep your eyes and ears open. You might just catch a glimpse of a hoofprint in an old stone , the ruins of a fortress haunted by the sound of hammers , or the silhouette of a saint accompanied by his dog …
And if you liked these three stories, quickly return to discover our other legends of the Val d'Ardenne : the Nutons , the Three Brigands of Givet , Madame de Cormont , the terrible Mawhot , the Ladies of Meuse and the mysterious Haussée Stone.
The Ardennes is a land of legends. Now it's up to you to write the next chapter!
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