Relais de poste à chevaux de Launois-sur-Vence, Horse post relay in Launois-sur-Vence, France

The Relais de poste à chevaux de Launois-sur-Vence is a historic post station with multiple buildings such as stables, carriage halls, lodgings, and storage buildings arranged around a central courtyard. The layout reflects the typical design of a 17th century relay station.

Founded in 1654, this station was a key point on the route between Paris and Sedan where travelers and mail were relayed around the clock. It played a crucial role in France's transportation network.

The postilion's brassard plate kept at the Musée de La Poste in Paris carries a motto containing the word "saumon": relays like this one also carried salmon caught by monks in the Semoy to the royal tables at Versailles. The outbuildings now hold an orchard of traditional Ardennes fruit trees and a rose garden assembled by an INRA researcher from old roses found in Ardennes cemeteries.

The site is open to visitors and receives around 60,000 a year; a museum display inside, running since February 2026, uses themed rooms, the courtyard and the buildings to tell the story of relays from the 17th to the mid-19th century. The outbuildings hold an orchard of traditional fruit trees and a rose garden of old roses gathered from Ardennes cemeteries.

An observation tower sits above the north gate where guards once monitored arriving carriages and tracked movements during night hours. This watchtower reveals the security measures that were necessary to operate a busy relay station around the clock.