Verdun ceremonies -- 100th anniversary of the battle
 

This weekend was chosen for the Franco-German commemorations of the Battle of Verdun in World War 1. This pitted one million French troops against one million German troops and lasted 10 months. 700,000 soldiers were wounded or killed in this battle alone.

Anyway, there is no lack of documentation about the battle, so I am not going to try to repeat it here, but it might be useful to know that there will be quite a few travel disruptions in eastern France this weekend, and the general public will have little or no access to the battlefield areas until the VIPs clear out. The most important day will be Sunday May 29th when François Hollande and Angela Merkel will have a very full agenda in Verdun. The A4 autoroute between France and Germany will remain open, but there is a good chance of traffic congestion during the day.

On the morning of the 29th, the ceremonies will be at the German cemetery of Consenvoye (10h30) and the city of Verdun (11h15) -- the city hall and Place de la Nation.

Then there will be a generous lunch break of course. Afternoon ceremonies will be at the Mémorial de Verdun (14h30) and the Douaumont Ossuary (15h30).

The Verdun area is very much overlooked by most foreign visitors except the Germans, and it is both lovely and tragic. I was there 10 days ago and took a number of photos which show that the scars of war are as visible as ever: http://tinyurl.com/hjkrm4m

I also visited the <b>Mémorial de Verdun</b> and found it every bit as interesting as the <i>Mémorial de Caen</i>. It has just reopened after being closed for renovation for 3 years, and it is quite spectacular: http://tinyurl.com/memorialverdun

A great report Kerouac - as usual.

I've visited a number of battle areas, cemeteries and prisoner camps in France; the one thing that I really appreciate is that following all that horror and destruction, nature has quietly reclaimed what was its own.

Two of my great-uncles from Australia fought in northern France. One was killed in action, the other returned to live a life that was a shadow of his pre-war life.

We can't afford to forget what has gone before, and do our best to ensure it isn't repeated. Di

Thank you for your report and your photographs. Because I am the daughter of a Germany veteran of Verdun, I have visited that area. Your photographs quietly make clear the horror my father expressed whenever he was able to talk about it. . . which wasn't often. My French mother lived inside the German occupied area around Lille where her father had a textile factory. She was a Dr. and met my father . . .where else . . in a French army hospital.

My father's two brothers who had emigrated to Milwaukee, entered the war with the American contingent. They didn't talk much about it either.

Again, thank you for your photos and comments.

Thanks for the report. In the photos I noticed a resemblance between the WWi forts and the Maginot Line forts that would be built afterwards.

For those who want to learn more about the battle, Alistair Horne's "The Price of Glory" is an excellent start.

http://www.amazon.com/Price-Glory-Ve...price+of+glory

We were in Verdun about two years ago. We spent two days seeing the area and the forts, a destroyed village. Very chilling and sad.

We also saw an exhibit about Verdun at the Army Museum in Paris when we were there this February.

If we get back that way, I'd love to see the Memorial de Verdun. Thank you for posting about the ceremonies. I'm going to read your reports now!

I think it will rain on the ceremony. That always happens to Hollande.

My thanks also for starting this topic and for your report with its photographs.

British interest in the First World War is usually concentrated on Flanders, where the greatest British losses were. We are about to mark the centenary of the start of the battle of the Somme, and one objective of that was to take away some of the German pressure on the French at Verdun.

I had always wanted to visit Verdun, and was lucky to find an organised tour, so we were there on 21st May. Unfortunately, preparations for the Hollande/Merkel visit meant that our visit to the ossuary and cemetery was restricted, but we did see the Memorial and Fort Douaumont. The memorial is a very impressive museum in the modern style, while Fort Douaumont must have been a terrifying place to be, even if not under bombardment.

The next day we spent in Metz, which was part of Germany from the end of the Franco-Prussian war to the end of the First World War, and was partly rebuilt as the western-most German Imperial city. The railway station is especially splendid. Those with tastes in older architecture will want to visit the Cathedral.

It was our first visit to this area of France. There is a lot to see, and we hope to return.

I'm glad you got to see Metz, too. I have always found the Prussian architecture striking. If you ever go to Luxembourg, you will find that their central train station is a miniature copy of the Metz station.

I believe that the British ceremonies in the Somme are on July 1st. I think I saw that the events at Thiepval are sold out, because they decided that tickets were needed this year.

Kerouac. We actually stayed in Luxembourg, in a hotel opposite the station. I did not notice the ornamentation with images of teutonic knights that were on the station at Metz, but there are certainly similarities in style between the two.

Going back to the Battle of Verdun, I believe that the German army replaced its losses by bringing up reinforcements, while the French rotated its army. This meant that most French soldiers fought at Verdun at some stage, and so ensured Verdun's place in French history. The German soldiers just became more and more exhausted and demoralised.

lest we forget

This is excellent, as always. It's Memorial Day weekend for us in the US, so a great report for all of us consider and to understand the impact of war regardless of where we are from. Thanks, kerouac.

Not for the first time, you have added another destination to my essential travel list. The museum appears to take a similar approach to the fairly new Museum of the Great War which I think you know. Noticing your comment on French colonial troops, I recommend the book The World's War: Forgotten Soldiers of Empire, by David Olusoga. It compares (and contrasts) the approaches of the British and French empires, pointing as well to the German use of African troops but confined to Africa. The BBC has a two-part documentary accompanying the book.
www.museedelagrandeguerre.eu