Erosion has been even more active there, and in that part of the
Tardenois the plateau is dissected into narrow strips separated by deep
valleys, broad and moist, the largest of which is the valley of the
Ardre. In the valley bottoms the streams are bordered by bands of
tillage land; above, on the lower slopes, amid the vineyards and
orchards which monopolize all the favorable exposures, is a multitude of
small villages, some of which have become famous--Ste. Euphraise,
Bligny, and Ville-en-Tardenois, whose rustic dwellings of uncut rubble,
arranged amphitheatre-wise, sheltered some 500 inhabitants. Higher up,
on the uneven surface of the plateau, are scattered villages built on
limestone foundations--tiny fortresses, like Rumigny and Champlat, the
scene of hard-fought battles. Almost the entire surface is covered with
forests of pine and oak and birch. These are the woods of Le Roi,
Courton, Pourcy, and Reims, where hand-to-hand fighting went on for more
than a fortnight, British, Italians, and French succeeding at first in
checking the enemy and then in forcing him back, in those titanic
combats. They were, in reality, genuine mountain battles; for the hills
reach a height of 265 metres, above the level of the plateau, while the
valleys are at least 100 metres deep; and the difficulties of the uneven
surface were greatly increased by the obstacles offered by forests,
vineyards, streams, and the villages, closely packed with stone houses,
which could easily be transformed into fortifications.
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