Pierre Roland d'Anchamps, le rocher lancé par le diable

Anchamps

On the left bank of the Meuse, between Anchamps and Laifour, in the Ardennes, a stone in the shape of an irregular pyramid rises from the ground: the pierre Roland. It measures about 1.40 m; a second block of diorite lies about ten metres away. According to tradition, the knight Roland, nephew of Charlemagne, was crossing the Meuse valley, dark at the time, when the devil, who hated the emperor and his people, attacked him. He tore two enormous blocks from the top of the mountain to crush him. Roland, motionless, arms outstretched, prayed to the Lord: the first block passed over his head and rolled into the Meuse, the second planted itself in front of his horse, and the devil went off defeated. In another version, Roland draws his sword Durandal and splits the rock in two. English Wikipedia adds that the devil threw these stones from the three rocks of the Dames de Meuse, and that the edges of the stone are said to be aligned with sunrise and sunset. The sources also speak of a possible landmark for the boatmen of the Meuse. No date is given: everything that is known lies in the tale.

Getting there: Free, on the left bank of the Meuse, between Anchamps and Laifour (Parc naturel régional des Ardennes). The Val d'Ardenne Tourisme website gives neither car park nor route. Approximate coordinates: route link on this page (49.93093 N, 4.675371 E); the ‘La Pierre Roland’ node in OpenStreetMap is at 49.9230 N, 4.6754 E, about 800 m further south. Exact position not verified.

Opening times and access details are given as a guide only: check before you set out.

Ambient sound