World War I sites in North Eastern France

I have visited several WWI sites in the past throughout the years, there is still a lot to see.
I can give you a far as I know summary.

If you are travelling from Marseille to nothern France, I think best is to visit the fairly new Musée de la Grande Geurre in Meaux, close to Paris first. Besides the well displayed objects, the explanation of the relationship between France and Germany since 1870 gives insight about the increasing political and military tensions between the two.

In Paris you can visit Musée de l’Armée Invalides with a WWI section.

Around Verdun you can visit *Fort de Vaux, *Fort de Douaumont, the ossuaire, *Tranchée des baïonettes, *the destroyed village of Ornés and many memorials. Some 30km north-west of Verdun there is a large American cemetery near Romagne-sous-Montfaucon.
North of Amiens - river Somme - many smaller and larger places like Canadian National Vimy Memorial, *Beaumont Hamel (Newfoundland) Memorial and Notre-Dame de Lorette.

In Belgium the Royal Army Museum in Brussels has an extensive collection of unique WWI material. The battlefields and memorials in and around Ypres like In Flanders Fields Museum, Tyne Cot Cemetry, Menin Gate, *Memorial Museum Passchendaele etc.

Names marked with * can be seen as battlefields

Almost every place I have visited myself and each site is of interest, the memorials are moving.

You will have to travel a lot through the country-side, I think a car is best to consider.

Thanks Wil for your reply - I will start looking up those places in detail. And your suggestion regarding the car is well noted, I suspected it would be the case, especially given the short time frame we have given ourselves for this visit.

Ian - A good planning will get the best out of it. To be complete, there is more then I listed, so you also can get in contact with the local tourist offices for more info. Think about www.amiens-tourisme.com / www.arras.fr/tourisme / www.verdun-tourisme.com / www.toerismeieper.be etc.
Museums experience different then visits to the sites, where it really happened. There are places where trenches are reconstructed or have little visitor centres like the one of Tyne Cot, the tourist offices can inform you about that.

Hi,

Regarding the WW I sites...some excellent suggestions made by Will above.

I'll comment on northern France: Are you interested in British, US, Canadian, German or French sites? Notre Dame de Lorette and Beaumont Hamel are pretty poignant, grim. There is also a museum nearby of the war in Notre Dame de Lorette. In northern France if you're motorised driving in the Somme area, north of Amiens en route to Arras, you'll see British and Commonweath cemeteries dotted around the countryside. The tall white cross and the green road signs indicate spot.

In Arras itself since the city was the site of the BEF General HQ there is a large British mil cemetery and memorial at the edge of town, takes a bit over an hour to walk it from the train station. It is located next to the French Army caserne, which I believe is not open to the public if you want to visit the French Army.

Spend a few hours or so walking around the centre ville in Arras, you'll come across plaques referring to the 1917 Cambrai tank operation and also the events of 1940 and 1944. From Arras you can get to Vimy, best is to go by rental car. How much time do you intend on spending here? In between Arras and Vimy is Neuville St Vlaast where another memorial and Museum on the war are located. I spent most of the afternoon the first time going through these places.

I was in Cambrai once in the centre ville, didn't see plaques specifically on WW I, maybe I missed them, other than general ones with "mort pour France"

Two other sites in the Somme are the towns of Peronne and Albert, the latter being HQ for the British. Albert has a WW I museum but the biggest one on the war in France is in Peronne. With a rental car they are both easily accessible., not that far from each other.

Hi, ...to continue.

"... in terms of specific WW I sites." En route to Verdun from Paris is another site where an Anglo-French military Cemetary is located in Chateau-Thierry, ca one hour from Paris Gare de l'Est. Nearby (you need a car for this) is Bois de Belleau, where the Marines were thrown in to stem the German advance. Since I had come by train and on foot, I didn't see this and the big US memorial up the hill. You do see in Chateau Thierry itself, the memorial to the US 3rd Inf. Div....big enough to indicate their dates in France. When you see the Marne at Chateau-Thierry, imagine what the place was like in July 1918, in the thick of it. It was a nice sunny hot summer day when I went there, also in July.

Another "specific WW I site" I spent time at and would recommend as a separate day trip from Paris is the town of Compiegne....see the site of the armistice, notice in the replaced rail car there is no seat or name tag for the US representative, mil or civilian at the table. Do you plan on including Metz and its surrounding villages in this itnerary?

Crosssing into Belgium if you're going that far where the German 1st Army bumped into the BEF at Mons is a battlefield monument. and cemetery. I have not seen this site myself.

Hello Ian,

You might check out greatwarjouneys.com for additional ideas but the previous posters are already giving great suggestions. I've only seen the museum in Albert, Thiepval and Beaumont Hamel but the experience was well worth the time.

Ian,
This website is great for finding where you may want to go. http://www.abmc.gov/home.php
We have been many times to Montsec monument and St. Mihiel cemetery, also there's other countries cemeteries in the area which are interesting to compare to the US's. It's definitely only car reachable though, the train is not within walking distance to St. Mihiel cemetery. Most places have ceremonies around Memorial Day also, so if you're planning to go then, look to see if something is happening where you want to visit. The volunteers at the more remote places are so fantastic.

Thanks to all of you for the detailed information.