This little town, made famous by the arrest of Louis XVI. (p. 74), was almost completely destroyed.
In September, 1914, it was occupied by the Germans, who converted it into a fortress. On September 26, 1918, the first day of the Franco-American offensive, it was retaken by the American First Army in a single charge.
The River Aire divides the town into two parts: the upper town on the left bank, and the lower on the right bank. The visit to the upper town will be made on the second day (see p. 74).
VARENNES CHURCH. SOUTH-WEST FRONT
N. 46 coming from Fléville, passes the church (hist. mon.—photos above and below).
The three-sided apse of this church, with its fine windows, dates from the 14th or 15th century; the façade and the tower from the 18th.