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Imperial War Museum in London
– England
The Imperial War Museum is unique
in its coverage of conflicts, especially those involving
Britain and the Commonwealth, from the First World
War to the present day. It seeks to provide for,
and to encourage, the study and understanding of
the history of modern war and ‘war-time experience’
and for the Great War, examines the reasons for
the conflict, the life of the soldiers in the trenches,
the lives of the civil population, and the war in
the air and on the sea.
Don’t miss ‘The
Trench’: special sound effects, lighting
and smells plunge the visitor into the everyday
lives of the soldiers during the Battle of the
Somme in 1916.
Lambeth Road
London SE1 6HZ
www.iwm.org.uk
mail@iwm.org.uk
Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 - Belgium
At the Memorial Museum Passchendaele
1917, the visitor gets the opportunity to walk
through a German trench and descend into a unique
20 feet deep British dugout with communication
and dressing posts, headquarters and accommodation.
The museum is an ideal starting point for a
visit to the area, an absolute must for tourists
and specialists.
www.zonnebeke.be
info@passchendaele.be
“In Flanders Fields Museum” at
Ypres – Belgium
The collection reflects
the moving picture of the destruction of the
town, the misery and distress felt by soldiers
and civilians during the war. This modern,
interactive museum is a stirring appeal against
war.
Halle aux Draps
Grote Markt 34 – B-8900 IEPER
Tel. +32 (0)57 22 85 84
Fax +32 (0)57 22 85 89
flandersfields@ieper.be
www.inflandersfields.be
There are many memorials,
cemeteries and remains of the battlefield
in the area around Ypres.
Monument de Notre-Dame de
Lorette – France (Pas-de-Calais)
The hill at Artois was particularly coveted during
the Great War since there was an excellent view
from here of the entrenched armies. The French
necropolis includes over 20,000 tombs of soldiers
who perished between October 1914 and September
1915, during this long period of arduous armed
conflict. The crypt near the basilica bears witness
to the sacrifice made by unknown soldiers in other
conflicts throughout the world.
62153 ABLAIN-SAINT-NAZAIRE
Tel. +33 (0)3 21 45 27 55
Canadian National Monument and Memorial park –
Vimy – France (Pas-de-Calais)
The majestic Canadian national memorial is located
at the heart of a park where trenches and tunnels
have been restored. The park commemorates the successful
offensive of 9 April 1917 when the Canadians took
Vimy Ridge.
Also well worth your while are a visit to the interpretation
centre and a guided tour of the underground tunnels.
The scars of the conflict can still be seen on the
battlefield (trenches, shell craters…).
62580 VIMY
Tel. +33 (0)3 21 50 68 68
Fax. +33 (0)3 21 58 58 34
La Caverne du Dragon (The Dragon’s Cave)
– France (Aisne)
This old stone quarry was transformed by the Germans
in 1915 into barracks (gun emplacements, chapel,
cemetery, dormitories, etc). At the end of 1917,
both French and Germans lived here side by side.
The exhibits in the museum provide a good picture
of the everyday life of the soldier during the
Great War. Also well worth a visit is the Chemin
des Dames where the remains of many battles can
still be seen.
02160 Oulches-la-Vallée-Foulon
Tel. +33 (0)3 23 25 14 18
caverne@cg02.fr
Musée de la coopération
franco-américaine (Museum of Franco-American
Cooperation) – Blérancourt –
France (Aisne)
The first centre for French war-wounded was set
up in 1917 in this 17th century chateau by Americans
who had come to the aid of the civil population.
They also received vital commodities which meant
they were able to avoid being evacuated.
The historical and artistic artefacts serve to illustrate
the humanitarian aid given by the Americans during
two worldwide conflicts and are evidence of Franco-American
ties.
02300 BLERANCOURT
Tel. +33 (0)3 23 39 60 16
Fax +33 (0)3 23 39 62 85
musee.blerancourt@culture.gouv.fr
Clairière de l’Armistice
(Armistice Railway Carriage) – Compiègne
– France (Oise)
The Armistice railway carriage found in the Rethondes
clearing, and symbol of the end of the nightmare,
is a replica of the real one that was used during
the signing of the Armistice on 11 November 1918.
The museum, which is dedicated to the two world
wars, also has a number of interesting stereoscopes.
60200 COMPIEGNE
Tel. +33 (0)3 44 85 14 18
Mémorial des Batailles
de la Marne and ossuary – Dormans –
France (Marne)
The 1914 -1918 war left behind it a particularly
cruel memorial - 80% of the town was completely
destroyed during the fierce fighting that went on
here during the second Battle of the Marne. The
military cemetery in Dormans is the final resting
place of 3,885 French and German combatants.
51700 DORMANS
Tel. +33 (0)3 26 58 22 31
Les sites de la Bataille de
Verdun (Verdun Battlefield and Sites) – France
(Meuse)
Mémorial de Verdun: this memorial museum
is a witness to what was anonymous heroism. The
museum strives for historical knowledge, for reconciliation,
and for the development of a civil European conscience.
5 5 100 FLEURY DEVANT DOUAUMONT
Tel. +33 (0)3 29 84 35 34
Fax +33 (0)3 29 84 45 54
Memorial.14-18@wanadoo.fr
www.memorial-14-18.com
The Champs
de bataille de la crête des Éparges
is a genuine open air museum showing remains of
fortifications, areas destroyed by artillery,
craters, etc…
The Forts
at Vaux and Douaumont both fell at the
hands of the Germans: the fort at Douaumont, the
largest (3 km of tunnels) and the best armed was
taken first; and the French and Germans clashed
with one another for 6 days and 7 nights swapping
gas attacks, bombs and flame throwers before the
fort at Vaux could be taken.
Today there is an ossuary
here at the heart of this land which became a
mausoleum. It is the final resting place of some
130,000 unknown French and German soldiers.
55100 DOUAUMONT
Tel. +33 (0)3 29 84 54 81
Fax +33 (0)3 29 86 56 54
infos@verdun-douaumont.com
www.verdun-douaumont.com
A small train through the underground
citadel takes you to see a number of recreated
scenes from the life of the regular soldier: the
infirmary, the headquarters, and tomb of the unknown
soldier, etc…
Avenue du 5ème RAP
55100 VERDUN
Tel. +33 (0)3 29 86 14 18
Fax +33 (0)3 29 84 22 42
verduntourisme@wanadoo.fr
www.verdun-tourisme.com
Le Centre
Mondial de la Paix (World Peace Centre)
is home to exhibitions, exchanges, meetings and
it is a place of reflection. The Centre Mondial
de la Paix, des Libertés et des Droits
de l’Homme is located in the Episcopal Palace.
Place Monseigneur Ginisty
55100 VERDUN
Tel. +33 (0)3 29 86 55 00
Fax +33 (0)3 29 86 15 14
cmpaix@wanadoo.fr
Les champs de bataille des
Vosges (Vosges Battlefields) – France (Haut-Rhin)
Le Mémorial
du Linge: in the blaze of summer 1915,
le Linge became the ‘Tomb des Chasseurs’
- an infantry and tank corps. There are numerous
German and French trenches in the battlefield
in the Munster and Kaysersberg valleys. It became
a listed historical monument in 1921.
68370 ORBEY
Tel. +33 (0)3 89 77 29 97
Le Monument
National et le champ de bataille du Vieil-Armand:
this is a listed historical and national monument;
the slopes and the very heart of this major First
World War site are teeming with trenches, underground
tunnels, and shelters that remind one of the suffering
and courage of the numerous combatants who passed
through here in 1915.
Tourist Information Office
for Cernay and Vieil-Armand
1, rue latouche
68700 CERNAY
info@cernay.net
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