It combines archival images and artwork by the soldiers. A unique audiovisual presentation recreates the violence of the battle and shows the tremors and contortions of ground constantly pounded by shellfire. It is set within a glass cage and there is a video wall covering an area of 100 sq. In line with the ideas put forward by the founders of the Memorial, the replica of the 1916 battlefield remains the central feature of the visit. Traces of the battle are still visible in the surrounding countryside.
The actual battlefield can be seen from the terraces on the top floor.
On the first floor, visitors are shown the battlefield environment and background details on countries at war. The ground floor focuses on the experiences of soldiers fighting on the front line.
The visitor trail in the new Memorial, translated into English and German, leads right into the heart of the battlefield. For anybody seeking to feel, understand and pass on the true meaning of Verdun, the Memorial Museum is a “must”. It is one of Europe’s leading First World War museums, opening in 1967 thanks to the work of a group led by Maurice Genevoix, ex-serviceman and member of the Académie française. Located in the depths of hills around Verdun that are still pockmarked from the millions of shells which killed more than 300,000 soldiers here and wounded 400,000 in less than a year, the Verdun Memorial Museum retraces the history of the most famous battle in the First World War. It will be occupied for 8 months by the German army, which will make it a shelter for its troops and an essential support point on the right bank of the Meuse to continue its offensive.ĭespite several attempts to win back, the fort will only be taken over on 24 October 1916 by french colonial troops (the Morocco Colonial Infantry Regiment and the 43rd Senegalese Tirailleurs Battalion).įrench General Pétain said that it has cost the life of 100000 french soldiers to retake Fort Douamont ! This event is then celebrated as a great victory in Germany. The fort, occupied by some 60 French soldiers, was taken without combat by the Germans on February 25, 1916, four days after the beginning of the Battle of Verdun. By 1915, the French General Staff had concluded that even the best-protected forts of Verdun could not resist bombardments from the German 420 mm (16.5 in) Gamma guns. Pay your respects to the WW1 fallen soldiers while walking along the row of graves of the Meuse Argonne American Military Cemeteryįort Douaumont was the largest and highest fort on the ring of 19 large defensive works which had protected the city of Verdun, France since the 1890s. Visit this impressive 19th century fortified military work “Fort Douamont” which changed hands several times during the fighting in 1916 but still houses its retractable 155mm canon under armored cupolaīe amaze to visit the new layout of the Verdun Memorial Museum which combines a learning experience and emotion, taking visitors into the heart of the Great War.Ĭlimb up the 234 steps tower of the American Monument in Montfaucon and on top from the observation platform contemplate magnificent views towards the battlefield. The Douamont Ossuary building gather the skeletal remains of at least 130,000 unidentified combatants of both germans and french soldiers Aboard a minivan you will cross through the city of Verdun and discover the visibles scars (ww1 trenches, shell holes, bunkers) left by the war onto the landscapes (red zone) after the battles of 19.
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