Nordfrankreich GB

8/13/2019 Nordfrankreich GB

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German Military Cemeteries

Bourdon

Reconciliation about the gravesWork for peace

Northern France

Volksbund DeutscheKriegsgrberfrsorge e. V.


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In France, the German War Graves Commission (Volks-bund Deutsche Kriegsgrberfrsorge e.V.) looks after 192

German war cemeteries from the First World War, containing768,000 dead, and 23 war cemeteries from the Second

World War, containing 228,000 dead. The Commission -

performs this work on the basis of a War Graves Agreement,concluded between the Federal Republic of Germany andFrance.

These war cemeteries are, for the most part, off thebeaten track, away from the main tourist routes. Neverthe-

less, every year in France more than half a million peoplevisit these cemeteries.


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This shows that the dead of the two World Wars are notforgotten. Perhaps, one day, your travels may also take you

to one of these war cemeteries.

The cemeteries are specifically highlighted and named

on the maps. The detailed map sections show you the way.

In 2005, a joint project was initiated to compile a Franco-German Atlas of the war cemeteries in France that are

home to the dead of both nations.

Cemeteries 1914/18

Cemeteries 1939/45

LEGEND

Maintenance building,extension


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The Wars in France

The 1870/71 Franco-Prussian WarThe Franco-Prussian War of 1870/71 was the first of

three wars in 75 years. Even today, graves and monuments

still commemorate this war, a war which took the lives of80,000 people from both nations. The deciding battle of the

war took place on 1st September 1870 in Sedan. Followingviolent clashes with the Germans, Napoleon was defeated.

After this battle, it was no longer possible to hold back the

German troops, and they went on to take Paris and, later,Strasbourg. France was beaten. The peace treaty signed

in Frankfurt am Main on 10th May 1871 meant the end of

the war. France ceded Alsace and part of Lorraine to theGerman Empire.

The First World War in FranceThe First World War had a devastating effect in France.

As well as a large number of British and American soldiers,930,000 Germans and more than one million French sodiers

also fell. At 192 sites, 461,000 German war dead lie in

individual graves, with around 294,000 buried in communalgraves. Following the Agreement on the Protection of WarGraves, signed between Germany and France after the

Second World War on 19th July 1966, the militarycemeteries were restored and have been maintained and

looked after by the Volksbund ever since. Work to restorethe cemeteries of the First World War for 769,148 war dead

lasted until the 1980s. Wooden crosses were replaced with

crosses made of stone or metal, buildings at the sites wererebuilt, and the gardens landscaped.

The cemeteries lie along what were once the frontlines of

areas of land that were once so heavily fought over. Marne,Maas, Somme, Verdun and Flanders: these theatres of war

were the scenes of battles that claimed the lives of morethan two million people on both sides.

As a result, the section of map shown on page 2/3(northern France) shows a large number of German war

cemeteries. By reading the dates of the dead on thegravestones, it is possible to get an idea of how the war

took its course in this region.

The advance by the German troops through Belgiumand on to France claimed many victims right at the start

of the war in August/September 1914. In the years thatensued, dreadful fighting flared up over this poorly fortified

border section.

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The battle of the Somme, which began in June 1916,the battle for Verdun in 1916/17 and the battle at Flan-

ders, the western offensive of 1917/18, are the tragichighpoints of the war in Western Europe.

The cemetery at Neuville-St.-Vaast/Pas-de-Calais has44,833 dead and covers an area of some 10 hectares,making it the largest German military First World War

cemetery in France. It was laid out in 1919 by the French.Between 1975 and 1983, the war cemetery was redesigned,

work which included the replacement of the woodencrosses with metal ones. The cemetery was overhauled

with the construction of an entrance building and a wardens

hut. The cemetery still looks the same today.

The name Verdun symbolises the inhumanity and the

impotence of people in the face of the violence of the warmachine deployed here during the First World War. Neither

side wanted to give in. Accordingly, the number of people

who died here was high. The fighting began on 21st Febru-ary 1916 and lasted until August 1917. The struggle for

Verdun saw almost 300,000 fall on both sides. Almost threequarters of all the places that lay within the battle zone were

destroyed, with 200,000 hectares of land rendered uninha-bitable.

Even today, more than 89 years after the end of the First

World War, it is still possible to make out the scars of thewar, such as in the region of von Vauqois and in the Butte

de Montfauon, as well as in the area around Douaumont.Even today, human skeletons are still being found during

excavation and recultivation work within the former battlezones. The battle field had been churned up and littered

with shells and ammunition.

Neuville-St.-Vaast (44,833)


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The Volksbund suspects that, with the extensive clearancework that was carried out in this area right up to the 1930s,

it subsequently proved impossible to recover the bodies ofaround 20,000 war dead on both sides. In the area of

Verdun, 73,000 French and 85,000 German war dead lie in

64 war cemeteries. More imposing than all this, however, isthe house of mortal remains (bones) in Douaumont, in the

vaults of which 120,000 unknown soldiers have been giventheir final resting place and in whose tower a colossal bell

tolls in memory of the dead.

The Second World War in FranceIn France, the Second World War claimed the lives of

240,000 German and 255,000 French. Two war graveagreements signed between the Federal Republic of Ger-

many and the Republic of France regulate the developmentand maintenance of the German war cemeteries. Under

these agreements, work was assigned to the Volksbund.In 1975, 22 sites for the war dead of the Second World War

were completed, with the Giffertswald (Spicherer Hhen)cemetery added to the list in 1998. Young people attend

German and international youth camps to assist the Volks-bund in maintaining and looking after the war cemeteries.

Between Verdun and Amiens, there is a large number

of German, British and French War cemeteries. For thisreason, you will appreciate that in this brochure we have

placed the focus on providing an account of the Germancemeteries at which the overwhelming majority of the war

dead of the Second World War have their final resting place.These are the cemeteries at Beauvais, Bourdon, Fort-de-

Malmaison, Noyers-Pont-Maugis, Solers and Versailles.

You can find these on our main map on page 2/3. Detaileddescriptions are also included in the books of names on

display at the cemeteries.

Beauvais

The German War cemetery at Beauvais was laid out inthe summer of 1942 by the burial service of the German

Wehrmacht, which transferred the war dead who fell in theFrench campaign of 1940 in the areas of Oise, Somme and

the lower Seine and buried them at a single site. The Frenchburial service completed further reburial work in 1946 and

1947. After the conclusion of the Franco-German war gravesagreement (1954), the Volksbund began to develop the site

in July 1961. From the centre of Beauvais, west of the Calaisroad, there runs a side street that leads to the war cemeterysituated on the southern tip of Bois brul.


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Visitors reach the narrow gate of the entrance building viastone steps. It is made of reddish Main sandstone, and is

covered in sheet copper. On the wall of the commemorativehall it says in large letters:

Remember the dead! Change yourself!

Down two sides, the war cemetery is surrounded by

woodland, whilst on the entrance side and in the south eastit is bordered by a sandstone wall. The burial ground has

been grassed over, with shrubs and small groups of treesplanted along the edges. In the rear third of the elongated

stretch of land a 3.50 metre high stone cross rises up. Most

of the graves have been identified with small stone plaques,each bearing the names and dates of two war dead. Towardsthe wooded side of the cemetery, 80 cm high pillars (stele)

have been erected, each one bearing the names of four wardead. On 4th July 1964, the war cemetery, where 1,597 war

dead from the Second World War now lie, was opened to

the public.

SightsAbout 30 or so miles south east of the cemetery lies the

town of Compigne, with a population of over 40,000. This

has special significance for Germany and France.

The castle in the Place du Palais is worth seeing, it havingbeen built for Louis XV. Today, it is a national museum.

South of the castle grounds lies the forest of Compigne.

In the north-eastern section of the forest (about 4 miles fromCompigne) lies the Clairiere de l'Armistice, a forest clearing

where, on 8th November 1918, Marshall Foch received the

Beauvais (1,597)


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official German representatives in his Pullman carriage, who

then signed the ceasefire on 11th November. The originalcarriage, destroyed in the Second World War, was also the

place were the German-French ceasefire of 1940 was sig-ned. In a building on the edge of the clearing, it is possible

today to look around a replica of the Pullman carriage. The

town of Compigne and the local Volksbund in Bremen haveenjoyed close contact for many years. This began in 1961when the first Volksbund youth camp was organized in

Compigne to look after the German war graves.

BourdonThe German war cemetery at Bourdon lies south of the

Amiens to Abbville road, in the Somme valley. On the

southern side, it is bordered by the Somme sand flats. Thesmall village of Bourdon lies in the immediate vicinity. TheSomme, a previously little known river in northern France,

later became synonymous with the First World War. Thevalley of the Somme became the flashpoint for years of the

most violent battles. Place names such as Arras, St. Quentin,Cambrai and Bapaume are sad reminders of this war.

The German campaign on the western front lasted from10th May to 22nd June 1940, during the course of which theNetherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and parts of France were

occupied. On 11th May, German troops had even advancedas far as Sedan and, on 16th May, Cambrai to Amiens.

There then followed the battle for Paris, until France signedthe surrender on 22nd June in the forest of Compigne.

As part of the Franco-German War Graves Agreement, a

military cemetery was laid out for all the German war deadlying in temporary graves in the three French Dpartementsof Nord, Pas-de-Calais and Somme.

Replica of the Pullman carriage, in whichceasefires were signed in 1918/1940.


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Visitors enter the cemetery grounds via an initial fore-court area, also connected to the car park. Situated in the

wing of the entrance building on the left-hand side is thehome of the administrator and, in the right-hand wing, the

office and the visitors room, complete with the books of the

names of the dead who are buried here. The hall of honour,measuring 12 metres in diameter, is a 10 m high, round

structure built from sandstone from the Palatinate region.

The room gets its light from a circular, 60 cm diameteropening in the ceiling of the hall and through six narrow

openings in the brickwork. Prof. Gerhard Marcks createdthe larger-than-life marble sculpture, entitled Mother. The

shape of it reminds visitors of female sculptures made bythe ancient Greeks.

The path to the graves leads through the halls side

doors, both of which have copper fittings. Eight communalgraves are arranged around the hall. The other communal

graves lie behind the hall of honour, in the next section ofburial block G. Stone plaques bear the names of the dead

who have been identified. A wide, lawned path leads to the12-metre high wooden cross. The burial ground extends

along both sides of the path. For every six graves there isone cross made of French sand-lime brick, each of which

bears the name of three war dead on the front and back.Today, the cemetery is home to the graves of 22,215 war

dead from the Second World War. On 16th September1967, the war cemetery was inaugurated.

Bourdon (22,215)


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Sights to see around BourdonSouth-east of the war cemetery of Bourdon lies the town

of Amiens, with a population of around 160,000. The mainsights worth seeing are the cathedral, which continues to

stand unspoilt right in the heart of the town that was soheavily destroyed in the Second World War and which, for

the most part, has been rebuilt. Covering an area of 7,700square metres, it is the largest church in France and, in terms

of the foundations and the design, is a classic example of the

French gothic style. Extending north of the cathedral is anarea of the town that is criss-crossed by countless canals,

reminiscent of Venice. A visit to the hortillonages, a speciallandscaped horticultural garden immediately east of Amiens,

where orchards and vegetable gardens are watered by

countless channels drawn off from the Somme (rieux), isalso well worth it.

The area north of Bourdon was severely fought overduring the First World War. Here, the Germans troops tried

to advance through Belgium and on to Paris by circumven-ting Frances border fortifications. Many war cemeteries from

this time serve to illustrate this. Even today, it is possible to

identify trenches and the course taken by the frontline.

Fort-de-MalmaisonRight next to Fort-de-Malmaison lies one of the German

war cemeteries laid out by the German Wehrmacht in 1941

and extended by the Volksbund. Under the Franco-Germanwar graves agreement, the temporary burial site of Fort-de-

Malmaison was designated as the final War cemetery forGerman war dead of 1939/ 1945. Over 6,800 German war

dead from individual graves and smaller burial sites in the

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Bourdon (22,215)


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six French Departements of Aisne, Loiret, Seine-et-Marne,Oise, Yonne and Aube were transferred here by the Volks-

bund.

If you approach the war cemetery on the B road (Che-

min-des-Dames), you will see even from far away the15 m high cast iron cross that, together with the memorial

hall, forms the centrepiece of the cemetery. The cemeteryis 67,000 square metres in size and is enclosed by an earth

wall, densely covered in vegetation, measuring roughly oneand a half metres in width and one metre in height.

On the eastern flank, a side road leads to the entrance

200 metres away. From here, visitors go through a narrowgate to a small forecourt area bordering the entrance buiding.

It contains a reception room for visitors, where the bookscontaining the names of the war dead lying here are also

located. The entrance building, forecourt area and admini-strative building are all uniform in their design. From the

entrance building, the visitor can look across over the entirecemetery. The large cross and hall of honour dominate the

entire cemetery and are situated in the middle of the burialsite. The hall is built as a reinforced concrete structure, the

corners of which have been finished with natural stone brick-work. The sloping roof has been planted with grass. In the

heart of the open hall lies the communal grave, completewith a bronze plaque. The individual graves are divided into

eight plots. Rows of double graves each contain two wardead. Cast-iron crosses each bear the name and dates of

two war dead.

On 21st August 1965, the war cemetery, at which 11,841

German war dead from the Second World War now rest,was inaugurated.

Fort-de-Malmaison (11,841)


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Laon a Roman townNorth-west of the cemetery lies the town of Laon, named

Laudunum by the Romans, and home to a population of26,000 inhabitants. Today, it is the capital of the Dparte-

ment of Aisne and, thanks to its picturesque location, is

impressively situated on a small range of hills. A rack-and-pinion railway operates between the top and bottom of thetown.

The seven-towered cathedral of Notre-Dame, dating

from the 12th/13th century, is worth seeing. It is one of themost important early Gothic churches in France. Other

major cathedrals were built according to this style. Behind

the church choir lies the former bishops palace, todaythe Palais de Justice, which includes the remnants of aGothic cloister. Not far from the cathedral lies the museum,

interesting to archaeologists and art historians alike, in thegardens of which there is a roman Templar chapel, complete

with Gothic cupola.

Other buildings include the Abtei church of St.-Martin

from the 12th/13th century and, nearby, the ruins of thePorte Soisson (13th century) which is linked to a crooked

tower dating from the same period.

Noyers-Pont-Maugis (26,843)


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Noyers-Pont-MaugisOn the range of hills west of the Maas, the French

au thorities laid out a German war cemetery in 1922.

In the Second World War in 1940, with the breakthroughthrough the Ardennes and the Maginot line, violent fighting

once more erupted around the Sedan area. The war dead,initially buried by troops at the edge of the road or in

temporary cemeteries, were transferred between 1940 and1942 by the burial service of the German Wehrmacht to a

special piece of land next to the First World War cemetery.After the war had ended, a number of French soldiers were

also buried here. By the time of the conclusion of the Franco-

German war graves agreement in 1954, 4,880 war deadfrom the Second World War had already been given theirfinal resting place here. Other burials were carried out by

the Volksbund.

Visitors to the cemetery enter via a wroughtiron entrancegate. Covered steps lead to a lobby area, where the books

of the names of the war dead can be found in the visitor

section. A guide tells visitors how to find their way aroundthe cemetery plots.

A path slopes up from the entrance building to the memo-

rial hall, a small chapel lined with copper. The interior hasbeen designed as a cross vault and is illuminated by three

round windows made of coloured glass. The stature createdby Prof. Dr. Kurt Schwippert of a female figure made of shell

limestone personifies the mourning for the war dead of bothworld wars. At the end of the First World War burial site,

there is a memorial stone bearing the inscription:4,938 German war dead from the First World War lie in

this communal grave. 4,847 remain unknown!

The Second World War burial site is divided into eightblocks. On account of the sloping position, the graves are

identified in blocks 1 - 4 by grave plaques, laid flat on theground and each for two war dead. Groups of crosses have

been erected in this section. In blocks 5 - 8 and in the FirstWorld War burial site, crosses have been used, each bea-

ring the names of four or six soldiers.

The communal grave for the war dead of the SecondWorld War is located beyond the paved walkway. It is home

to seven known and 30 unknown dead and is identified bya commemorative stone plaque made of Belgian granite.


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On 17th September 1966, the war cemetery was

inaugurated. Today, this is where around 14,055 war deadfrom the First and 12,788 Second World War lie.

From the terrace close by, it is possible to get a viewright into the Maas valley and the Ardennes in Belgium.

Sights to see around Noyers-Pont-MaugisAbout 3 miles north of the cemetery, at the foot of the

Ardennes, lies the old fortified town of Sedan with around

25,000 inhabitants.

The town became infamous following the capitulationhere in 1870 by the French army under Napoleon III. In the

Second World War it suffered heavy damage. However, the17th century parish church in Place d'Armes, the town hall

in Place Turenne and a statue of French Marshall Turenne,born in Sedan (1611 - 1675), remain preserved.

In the Sedan area, there are countless German and

French memorials and graves in memory of the Franco-Prussian War. The museum is also worth a look.

Fortification of Sedan


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SolersThe war cemetery is about 20 miles south-east of Paris.

The 1st American army laid out a temporary war cemetery

here in 1944.

Whilst the American dead were transferred in 1948 to themilitary cemetery of Epinal, the German graves remained

under French management. Reburials from the surroundingarea, but also from Troyes and Chartres, were carried out.

As a result, the German war dead from the fighting in June

1940 in the area of Marne were transferred to Solers.

A paved walkway takes visitors through a copperplated

gate into the entrance hall. It is deliberately designed to bevery simple the walls in rough cut stone have no othersigns of decoration on them. A special effect is created by

the reinforced glass windows that take up the whole wall:a mosaic-like representation of the Resurrection made

of thick, strong coloured and dark glass.

From here, the whole site of the cemetery opens up,

complete with burial sites and the large cross. The graveshave been identified by stele (pillars) made of shell lime-stone, on both sides of which the names of the war dead

are inscribed. A wall made of rough, undressed stonesurrounds the entire cemetery, apart from a 24-metre wide

opening behind the group of tall crosses, through which itis possible to look onto the surrounding countryside. The

three tall crosses have each been worked from five basalt

blocks. Behind the group of tall crosses, in the middle of alarge lawned area, there lies the comrades grave. Home to53 war dead, 40 of whom are unknown. The war cemetery,

inaugurated on 28th July 1962, is currently home to bodies

of 2,228 German war dead from Second World War.

Solers (2,228)


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Not always ParisThe capital city of France is always worth a visit and you

will always discover something new every time you gothere. However, there are many nice destinations in the

provinces too. Not far from Solers cemetery as you travel

south east lies the famous Fontainebleau castle (page 18),which is well worth a detour.

Frances rulers, from Louis VII to Napoleon III, all livedhere. The sprawling building, set in attractive gardens,

covers five levels. The inside of the palace is richly fittedout, whilst the kings chambers are worth a special tour.

Eiffel tower in Paris the symbol of France


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The German military cemetery in VersaillesThe military cemetery for the German war dead in

Versailles is situated in the municipal cemetery of LesGonards. It is joined to a larger site for allied soldiers and

French war dead from the First World War and the victims

of wartime bombing in the Second World War.

Even during the First World War, 37 German soldierswere interred here, having died in French war prisons.

In February 1942, the burial service of the German Wehr-macht added more bodies who had fallen around Paris

during the campaign for France in 1940. A second Germanburial site from 1944 was closed by the French in 1946.

The dead were also given new graves at this site. In totalto date, 534 war dead have been laid to rest here. The

section of the cemetery was overhauled in 1957 by theVolksbund. For every four war dead, a joint grave stone

was erected, on the back and front of which the names oftwo war dead are listed.

At the old municipal cemeteries of Notre Dame and St.

Louis in Versailles, closed to further burials, there are alsoGerman/French burial sites dating back to the 1870/71

Franco-Prussian War. Those who lie here died during thesiege of Paris in the German military hospital, housed in a

side wing of the palace.

Versailles city of kings

Versailles, today with a population of around 98,000,is thanks to its history a much sought-after tourist desti-

nation. The palace at Versailles is particularly worth seeing,

with its charming residence of the French Emperors and itspalatial gardens.

Versailles (534)


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Versailles served as the centre for the monarchy even asfar back as 1682, until it lost its significance with the French

Revolution in 1789.

The hall of mirrors at the palace has a lot of historical

importance attached to it in several respects. On 18th Ja -nuary 1871, the proclamation of the German Reich was

read out here. After the end of the First World War on 28thJune 1919 the Treaty of Versailles was signed here.

Besides the palace, the town also offers a number of

other buildings worth a look. In the southern part of thetown lies the cathedral of St. Louis, dating back to the

18th century and, in the north, the Notre-Dame churchdating from 1684 to 1686, as well as the Muse Lambinet,

a museum that is home to furniture, paintings and copperengravings from this period. On the eastern side of the

wide Place d'Armes, the Ecuries Royales (Royal Stables)can be found, also built by Mansart and once home to

2,500 horses and 200 coaches.

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A look inside Fontainebleau castle


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War cemeteries of other nationsDuring the battles of the First and Second World War in

France, soldiers from many nations lost their lives. As wellas British and American war cemeteries there are cemete-

ries for Canadians, Australians, Poles, Russians, Czechs,Italians, Portuguese and Danes; two fine examples are

worth a mention: the top picture shows the Vimy Memorial

a monument to 11,184 Canadians killed north of Arras,whilst the bottom picture shows the British cemetery atVillers-Bretoneux/Somme in Amiens, laid out for Australian

war dead.

Villers-Bretoneux/Somme

Vimy Memorial


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The German War Graves Commission ...

... cares for the German war graves here in France and nearly

100 countries all over the world.

... helps the next of kin in finding out about their relatives fateand searches for their graves.

... works in the Eastern European countries since 1990 whenthe borders were opened.

... finds the war dead and brings them to central cemeteries.

... advocates through its work understanding and reconciliationwith former enemies.

... leads young people to war graves in order to makethem understand the terrible consequences of warsuch recognizing how important it is to work for peace.

... finances its work almost exclusively with contributionsof its members and donors and would be very grateful

for YOUR help.

Account: 3 222 999, BLZ 520 400 21Commerzbank Kassel, Germany

Banque SOGENAL Metz, France

Account: 02460 00020014521 25

Hotline for donations: +49 (0) 1805 - 7009 - 01

hal10/1

0-2008

Volksbund DeutscheKriegsgrberfrsorge e. V.

Werner-Hilpert-Strae 2

34112 Kassel

Telefon: +49 (0)561 - 7009- 0Telefax: +49 (0)561 - 7009 - 221Internet: www volksbund de

Nordfrankreich GB

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