Audio-guided tour : Angel or demon, Laon has its secrets...

he portals of the cathedral are striking, aren't they? The grandiose impression is heightened by the size of the forecourt, which is quite small, so it's as if you're standing at the foot of Notre-Dame! What's more, the right-hand portal depicts the Last Judgement, a theme taken up by many Gothic buildings (whether in Paris, Chartres or Bourges). By the way, look up and admire the two gargoyles on the façade: yes, they are a hippopotamus and a rhinoceros, you're not dreaming. However, they don't date back to the Middle Ages, but were added in the 19th century...

Recently restored, the facades and roofs of this courtyard were built between the 14th and 18th centuries. There is evidence of a hostelry resulting from a grouping of houses in 1626, when the remarkable wooden gallery serving the upstairs rooms above the stables was built.

Welcome to one of Laon's most typical medieval alleyways!

This was the residence of the former bishops of Laon in medieval times, and has been the town's courthouse since 1811. Due to the nature of the building, you won't be able to get inside these days - although you should know that its two remarkable chapels can usually be visited during the Heritage Days - but take a look at the beautiful sundial that adorns one wall of the inner courtyard, and as you turn around, meditate on the gargoyles of the seven deadly sins that spring from the adjoining cathedral!

Leaning against the north rampart after leaving the Place Aubry, look out over the plain on your right; there on the horizon you can see the Samoussy forest (a village a dozen kilometers away). Home to the Carolingian kings, it is said that this is where Bertrade and Pépin conceived the future Charlemagne, but listen to the commentary...

The citadel was built between 1595 and 1598 on the orders of Henri IV following his 1594 siege of the League town. To do this, two entire districts - between 2 and 300 houses, two churches and Laon's covered market - were completely razed to the ground! Note the gateway and its two bastions: they face the town, as if to keep it at bay... The gate, decorated with the king's coat of arms and bearing a dedication ("Built by Henry the Great in 1595, was restored and perfected by Louis Philippe I in 1835"), was fitted with a Poncelet drawbridge in 1847. It is said that his plans were criticized by Vauban himself, who even declared that his engineer should have been hung from the gallows!

Leaning back against a tree, your gaze shooting towards the horizon, you can see an imposing forest towards the bottom of the town... The local Central Park? Yes, that's a bit of it, as Laon is fortunate enough to have a vast area of fields, hillsides and forests at its heart - bucolic, isn't it? Keep your eyes peeled for deer...

One of the most beautiful views of the Porte d'Ardon, one of only three surviving gates from medieval times (there were 14 at the time!). It is also known as the Porte Royée, because royal convoys used to pass through it on their way to the palace. It is also said that Roland (yes, the one from Roncevaux) and Henri IV used it, and it was also through here that a squad from the 355th Infantry Regiment passed through early in the afternoon of 13 October 1918 to liberate the occupied town...

Admire the four-level elevation, typical of Gothic architecture: large arcades, then the tribune, the triforium and finally the high windows. And the light!