Colour Photo's of the Battlefield of Verdun nowadays.

Pierre Grande Guerre

Pierre Grande Guerre

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(photo: Command Post 119)

Colour Photo's of the Battlefield of Verdun.

Some of our fellow forum members may already know my web-site, Pierre's Photo Impressions of the Western Front.
Since my last visit to Verdun in May 2009, I started to completely renovate my photo pages about the battlefields around Verdun. Some of these pages have had already or will get a complete face-lift. Although my work is not finished yet, and because there is too much to see in one visit, I will inform you here of some important, recently made updates of my chapter about Verdun. At least, if there is some interest here for my updates of new developments in the Verdun photo pages.

For now I may invite you to the first 5 photo pages: "Verdun and it's Citadel", "Thiaumont", "The Road to Fort de Douaumont", "Fort de Douaumont", and "The Nécropole Nationale de Douaumont".
The emphasis of these pages lies not only on the French side of the battle. On the contrary: we must not forget that during the Battle of Verdun for instance the area around Thiaumont has been conquered and reconquered more than 20 times and that the Germans occupied Fort de Douaumont for eight months!

In particular I have given the already existing photo page about Fort de Douaumont a complete face-lift. Before, there used to be two pages concerning the fortress. Now I have combined all photos and historical background information together in one photo page. All analogue, 1994 photos have been removed. I replaced these with 95 new digital photos, made recently in May 2009. It is nowadays allowed to photograph the interior of the fortress. Of course I did spend much attention to a virtual tour of the interior and it's interesting history. The second part of this photo page gives you an impression of a tour over the top construction of the fortress and it's panoramas over the former battlefield.

As always, I added again translations of German and French texts, which are to be found on the sites and on the memorials. I added also some new maps and satellite photos.

Click on Verdun and it's Citadel, and follow from there my guiding avatars and links on the bottom of each photo page. Confused? Go always back to my Front Page (Home).

If you are interested in more updates of the follow up's about Verdun, let me know here.
For now, I do hope that you will enjoy my photos on my web-site. Thank you in advance for your visit.

Pierre
 
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Update of pages.
The renewed page of Abri Les Quatres Cheminées has merged with the renovated and extended report about Côte de Froideterre (formerly titled "Fort Froideterre").
The pages concerning the Bois des Caures and Lt. Col. Driant's Command Post have also merged into one photo page: Bois des Caures - Col. Driant's Command Post. I extended this new page with 2 2009 photo's of the location, where Lt. Col. Driant fell.

Due to future extensions of the Verdun chapter, the routing will change from times to times. When in doubt, always follow the link with my guiding avatar below the pages. Thanks in advance for visiting my website.
 
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I have recently face-lifted the photo-impression about Fort de Souville near Verdun with new maps and many, new 2009 pictures. The virtual tour over the battlefield runs from the destroyed village of Fleury, via the artillery exhibition outside the Memorial de Verdun, to the Pamart bunkers, and the Fort de Souville. I went inside the fortress for making some pictures, which of course I did, but I considered it also too dangerous to explore further on. We end this virtual tour with an extended visit to the interesting artillery position of Batterie de l’Hôpital.
I also updated the photo impression about Tunnel de Tavannes and the fortress with some maps, period pictures, and, perhaps even more interesting, a concise story about the Fire Disaster in the Tunnel of 4 September 1916, illustrated with some short fragments of French war journals.
The photo impression about the German Reprisals Camp has been extended with photo’s of some interesting landmarks in Flabas and, totally new, a concise photo report about the nearby Ville devant Chaumont- Deutscher Kriegsgräberstätte, which President Sarkozy visited last 11 November. “Que vive la Paix!”.
All these pages are also to be found on my FRONT PAGE or in the left column / ladder of my site under "Logs".
As always: thanks in advance for visiting my website!
 
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Coming from Fort de Souville and Batterie de l'Hôpital we continue our virtual tour on the battlefields around Verdun in 4 stops:
to the Pond of Vaux, the Destroyed Village of Vaux devant Damloup, and the Fort de Vaux. To end this impression we pay a visit to the nearby, rather dangerous, ruins of the Ouvrage de la Laufée. By lack of time we were alas forced to abandon our walk to the Batterie de Damloup, which we will save for another time.

In the red lined frames I give some extra attention to one of my favourite epics of the Great War, almost a well known classic: the one week Siege of Second Lieutenant Rackow on the superstructure of Fort de Vaux against Major Raynal’s overpopulated garrison in the dark corridors below. A tale of stubborn heroism on both sides, of broken morale, and of defeat with honour by lack of the vital necessities of life; water and latrines.

For now I wish you a good time, my guests, while visiting my new photo impression: Fort de Vaux.
Thank you in advance for visiting my web-site now and, hopefully, also later again.
 
Pierre these just keep getting better!!! I just spent the majority of my morning reading this. It is not a photo impression. It is a history course! Maps, photographs, then and now, very very clear. Stu must be going crazy about the JR 158 stuff. I cannot thank you enough for all of the effort you put into these. If you didn't get something you make it very clear. This is so worthwhile going through. Thank you again. :salute: :salute: =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>
 
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I released a new photo page about the Destroyed Villages of Bezonvaux and Ornes near Verdun. Often the emphasis of my impressions is on the military events of the locations of the Western Front. The sites of "Les Villages Détruits", the Destroyed Villages, like Bezonvaux and Ornes, remind us of the fate of the civilians along the Western Front.
On this new page you will find 74 images; maps, sketches, period pictures, and of course mainly our own photo’s. As always I translated for you the inscriptions on the memorials.

Thank you for visiting my website.
 
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From the Destroyed Village of Ornes we continue our route along the 1916 German Jump-Off Lines to the German War Cemeteries of Azannes I, Azannes II, Romagne sous les Côtes, and Damvillers. Before visiting Damvillers we make a short detour for a better view at the Côte d’Horgne, the former location of the “Gündellturm”.
To break this possible monotony we visit the American 316th I.R. Memorial at La Grande Montagne, a former German stronghold, also known as Hill 378. In a frame I sketch with a few words, showing text fragments of the Regimental History, the events of one of the last, and almost forgotten battles of the Great War; the Battle of La Grande Montagne.
We end our meandering trip with the German War Cemetery of Consenvoye along the east bank of Meuse river. To visit this page, click on “Azannes – Consenvoye”.

I also face-lifted the Argonne-page about Montfaucon. As the Battle of La Grande Montagne was a part of the larger Meuse-Argonne offensive, I had to refer with a link to my framed concise information about the Offensive. In the process I decided to add in the frame some more period pictures and some better informative maps of the stages of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive with date lines, found in a copy of a 1919 Michelin Battlefield Guide.
Thank you for visiting my website, and last but not least: a healthy, prosperous and peaceful New Year!
 
Pierre Grande Guerre said:
Thank you for visiting my website, and last but not least: a healthy, prosperous and peaceful New Year!
Click to expand...

And the same to you Pierre. Sincerest thanks for your fascinating pictures and narratives - I fear they will be as close as I will ever get to visiting these old battlefields.

All the best,

- Brett
 
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