La Roche-en-Ardenne

La Roche takes its name from the rock above a bend of the Ourthe in the Ardennes. A medieval castle commanded the river and protected traffic along its waterways. The counts of La Roche held the stronghold before selling it to the counts of Luxembourg in the twelfth century. In 1331 John the Blind, king of Bohemia and count of Luxembourg, authorized the town to build walls, adding to the defences beneath the castle.