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OISE LAND OF MEMORY From the battlefields to the “Peace Ring” Oise, a living hitage
OISELAND OF MEMORY
From the battlefields to the “Peace Ring”Oise, a living h�itage
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Publication Oise Tourisme - November 201522 place de la Préfecture 60008 Beauvais CedexM+33 (0)3 64 60 60 60 [email protected]
Graphic designOise Tourisme
Consulting and editingAnne Fusz
Cover photosFront cover: © Oise Tourisme / Grégory SmellinckxBack cover: © Oise Tourisme / Anne-Sophie Flament
PrintingRoto Press GraphicThis brochure has been printed on 100% PEFC-labelled paper, from sustainably managed forests.
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CONTENTS
Various views of the heritage sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Numerous scars and must-see sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5War cemeteries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6The Serge Ramond Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8The Historical Figurine Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9The aviation museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10The Montigny quarries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11The Chiry-Ourscamp Abbey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Emblematic Compiègne, 1914-1918 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Key WWI dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Location map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Key WWII dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Emblematic Compiègne, 1939-1945 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Memorial walks and the WWI Territorial Heritage Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Reference works and heritage associations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Les P’tits Découvreurs de l’Oise (“Little Explorers of Oise”) quality label is awarded to family-friendly tourist sites welcoming children.
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eJean-Yves Bonnard
Historian, Mayor of Chiry-Ourscamp,Director of the "Canopé de l’Oise",
author of notably:14/18 dans l'Oise,
L’Oise au cœur de la Grande Guerre,Les souterrains de la Grande Guerre,
Le Mont Renaud 1918and
Rethondes, le jour où l’histoire s’est arrêtée :11 novembre 1918 - 21 juin 1940.
Jean-Yves Bonnard, historian of both World Wars, helps us analyse and
understand these two great conflicts, and thereby adopt a new perspective,
as an introduction to visiting the numerous heritage sites of our region.
Excerpts.
Oise Tourisme : Our department was deeply marked by both World Wars, in 1914-18 and in 1939-45. Can we compare the similarities or differences in how these two conflicts were ex-perienced, so as to better understand the vestiges?
Jean-Yves Bonnard : Rather than focus- ing on similarities or differences, I think one should adopt the perspective of a continuum, very revealing for a better understanding of our local history, whose influence extends far beyond our region's borders. For the Second World War had its roots in the First World War, which in reality had solved nothing. Numerous examples in Oise illustrate this aspect of our history. Here, I will share with you a few that seem particularly important.
Oise, a land of invasionIt should first be pointed out that Oise has always been a land of invasion. Its geography makes it a natural pass-ageway, leading directly to Paris, and its attractiveness has always been great. The history of Oise is therefore insep- arable from that of France: such is certainly the case for both 20th-century wars, and a consideration of those events having occurred in Oise provides us with a broader understanding of things.
The combatants were familiar with trench warfareLet us consider, for example, the combat- ants. Some of them, who had experienced the war of 1870, were well familiar with the region, with its strengths and weaknesses. In the "static war" of 1914 to 1918, they remained three years in the northeast of the department. So they
were no stranger to trench warfare. And the direct result of this was, for the aggressor, to do everything possible to prevent the Second World War from becoming a defensive war. The period’s commanding officers had served during the Great War! This experience affected the thoughts and actions of many among them, and during the entire initial phase of the Second World War in Europe, Germany would favour a lightning war. But we know just how long it would be…
The Armistice Clearing: a single voice summing up a long page of historyThe most important event confirming this continuity I have evoked is, of course, the armistice of 1940, itself a consequence of the 1918 armistice. Marshal Ferdinand Foch chose the location, near the Rethondes railway station in the Compiègne Forest, for its discretion. He would make this site a symbol of France’s victory, which he considered both a military and a political victory, in the eyes of the entire world! Hitler would later destroy this same symbol by there forcing the French to sign the armistice of June 1940: a terrible and symbolic revenge, and a humiliation that France would seek to wash away by rehabilitating the site starting in 1944. Today, one can there admire the “Peace Ring”. What a history lesson!
From barbarity to exodusRegarding the civilians, their recollection of the darkest hours of 1914, of the First World War's slaughters and barbarities directly motivated the great exodus of 1940. Many would not await the evac- uation orders to flee and so escape the rigours of occupation and the appalling living conditions. This exodus
OISE AT THE HEART OF BOTH WORLD WARS
Diverse views of this “land of memory”1914-1918 1939-1945
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occasionally threatened hampering the French divisions' move to the frontline. Once again, the cause and effect link is evident.
The dramatic impact of semanticsIn 1914, when inhabitants were removed from their occupied village for their protection, they were referred to as "deportees”. This word would, of course, acquire a whole other meaning during the Second World War, dramatically delaying for some their full understanding of the unspeakable reality.
Origins of the French ResistanceIn Oise, the memory of the heavy and painful occupation by the Germans during the Great War generated a particularly marked hatred of the Boches. One result of this hostility was a natural propensity to join the Resistance movement during the Second World War, even in especially complex zones such as Noyon, also home to training camps for the SS youth. The men were already familiar with the use of arms: the former combatants had kept practicing their shooting (notably within sports associations, whose development had
been encouraged by the French law of 1901) and the young were not afraid of these weapons they had become so used to over the years! This perspective allows us to understand why the maquis were so numerous and active in Oise, even though the department was less favour- able to this type of guerrilla fighting than were other regions, such as the Vercors. Again, this explains that…
The influence of technologyThe growth of aviation during the Great War period allowed networks of aviators to take form and to organize special missions and high-risk reconnaissance operations. Georges Guynemer himself carried out such missions, before finally declaring “never again”. The danger was extreme, but the principle well established. During the Second World War, these so-called "pick-up operations" became more numerous. And aviation played an ever greater role, carrying out special operations, bombings, air defence actions… In 1940, the skies of Oise were red! From a land of invasion on the ground, the department became a high-altitude passageway for all belligerents, from Germany to Italy. And when necessary, the local population naturally came to the rescue of these French or Allied heroes.
Ruins and vestiges: the tip of the iceberg of the wars’ scarsIn 1918 and again in 1945, many towns of Oise had been reduced to piles of rubble. Their subsequent reconstruction inevitably modified their appearance. When one visits the department’s many heritage sites – its museums, vestiges and preserved ruins – and discovers in depth how Oise lived through both wars, one is enriched with images to compare to today’s reality. This allows us to take full stock of the great diversity of the reconstruction styles, testifying to the advances made by modernity that was allowed to spread due to the devastating destruction of many towns. A tour of the department’s memorial sites is indeed fascinating and allows us to deepen our knowledge and understanding of Oise and its turbulent history.
OT : If you had one piece of advice for our readers?
JYB : While they visit and discover the sites and tours presented in this brochure, they must keep in mind this approach and sharpen their powers of observation. History is ever present, but one must know how to read it, one must know how to look around to realize it. And in this manner discover much more than the local heritage treasures...
"It is only through the past that one can understand the present.” Claude Lévi-Strauss
But oh how the present sheds light on past realities!
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¢ Street plaques evoking important dates, events and figures.
¢ The names of our heroes, given to schools, town halls and houses.
¢ Symbolic locations, the childhood homes of Resistance fighters, internment camps…
¢ Over 30 memorial steles. ¢ War memorials, to be found in every
town. ¢ Military cemeteries and the tombs of
Companions of the Liberation.Commemorative monuments: The
Armistice Clearing in Compiègne, Place des Maréchaux square in Beauvais, the Monument to the Nurses in Pierrefonds.
Among these many memorial sites, some must-see sites have more to tell than a library of history books.
Compiègne, of course, a symbol of peace with the signing of the 1918 armistice, then a painful symbol in 1940, before the victorious revenge of the
T ime and reconstruction have managed to erase a portion of the ruins and the occupation’s devastation. But Oise remains rich with numerous memorial sites: monuments, steles, plaques, inscriptions… All material yet silent scars testifying
to Oise's history as a land occupied and broken, yet also strong and resistant, a land of armistice.
Liberation on 11 November 1944. The great museums, the stone quarries, the cemeteries, the warpath discovery trails, the ruins and other vestiges evoke a past that cannot be forgotten and underline the strength of spirit of all these heroes, from the most illustrious to the most anonymous.
As you tour the department, savour Oise's numerous traces of the history that so deeply marked and shaped it, while also discovering all of its treasures, its colours and its rewon and carefully maintained serenity.
Oise has blossomed yet again, its heart overflowing with harmony.
1914-1918 1939-1945
German military necropolis of Moulin-sous-Touvent
Town of Senlis
THE VISIBLE HERITAGE
Numerous scars and must-see sites
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WAR CEMETERIES
Paying tribute to their memory"To commemorate the war is also to deliver a message of peace. The victims no longer
have uniforms. They rest, enjoying equal respect.”
Launch of the First World War Centenary, Presidency of the French Republic, excerpts. C ivilians and soldiers, French,
Germans and Allies, the dead num-bered in the thousands in Oise.
Marks of flesh for all these martyrs of the war, marks of earth where they fell, and marks of stone before which we respect-fully bow. At the end of the Great War, the fields dotted with soldiers killed in battle and the temporary war cemeteries were scattered all about Oise. Over the
subsequent years and in numerous mu-nicipalities, necropolises were born of the desire to gather together all of these scattered graves, to provide a dignified burial to the soldiers dead on the battle-field and to honour their memory.
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Military cemetery of Tracy-le-Mont
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Villes et Pays d’art et d’histoireBeauvais
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Laissez-vous conter Beauvais « Ville d’art et d’histoire »…… en compagnie d’un guide-conférencier agréé par le ministère de la Culture
Le guide vous accueille. Il connaît toutes les facettes de Beauvais et vous donne des clefs de lecture pour comprendre l’échelle d’une place, le développement de la ville au fil de ses quartiers. Le guide est à votre écoute. N’hésitez pas à lui poser vos questions.
Le service Ville d’art et d’histoire
coordonne et met en œuvre les initiatives de Beauvais « Ville d’art et d’histoire ». Il propose toute l’année des animations pour les Beauvaisiens et les scolaires, et se tient à votre disposition pour tout projet.
Si vous êtes en groupe
Beauvais vous propose des visites toute l’année sur réservation. Des brochures conçues à votre attention peuvent vous être envoyées sur demande.Renseignements à l’Office de Tourisme de l’Agglomération de Beauvais.
Ce document a été conçu
sous la direction de Marie Ansar, animatrice de l’architecture et du patrimoine, service Ville d’art et d’histoire de la Ville de BeauvaisTextes : Jean-Yves BonnardPhotographies : Archives départementales de l’Oise (ADO), Collection François Barbier (FB), Collection Marie Ansar (MA), Direction de la communication - Ville de Beauvais (BVS), MUDO - Musée de l’Oise (MUDO), Réseau des Médiathèques du Beauvaisis (RMB), Service Ville d’art et d’histoire - Ville de Beauvais (VAH).
Bibliographie :
BARBIER F.-J. BONNET-LABORDERIE P. Images de la Grande Guerre à Beauvais, à Clermont, à Compiègne et dans l’Oise pour le 87e anniversaire de l’armistice, Beauvais : GEMOB, 2005.BONNARD J.-Y. 14-18 dans l’Oise, Noyon : Cap Régions Éditions, 2014.BONNARD J.-Y. L’Oise au coeur de la Grande Guerre 1914-1918, Beauvais : Archives départementales de l’Oise, 2008.EUZET J.-C. La vie à Beauvais de 1914 à 1918, Beauvais : GEMOB, 1996.
Beauvais appartient au réseau national des Villes et Pays d’art et d’histoire depuis 2012.
Le ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, direction générale des patrimoines, attribue le label Ville ou Pays d’art et d’histoire aux collectivités territoriales qui mettent en œuvre des actions d’animation et de valorisation de l’architecture et de leur patrimoine. Il garantit la compétence des guides-conférenciers, des animateurs de l’architecture et du patrimoine et la qualité de leurs actions. Des vestiges antiques à l’architecture du XXIe siècle, les villes et pays mettent en scène le patrimoine dans sa diversité. Aujourd’hui, un réseau de 181 villes et pays vous offre son savoir-faire dans toute la France.
À proximité : Amiens, Chantilly, Laon, Noyon, Saint-Quentin et Soissons bénéficient de l’appellation Ville d’art et d’histoire.
Renseignements
« Ville d’art et d’histoire »
Ville de Beauvais
Direction des affaires culturelles
Espace culturel François-Mitterrand
Rue de Gesvres
60000 Beauvais
03 44 15 67 00
Office de Tourisme de l’Agglomération
de Beauvais
1, rue Beauregard
60000 Beauvais
03 44 15 30 30
Monument commémorant les instituteurs de l’Oise morts pour la France dans l’ancienne
École Normale de Beauvais, aujourd’hui lycée Truffaut,
réalisé par Henri Gréber
LEARN MORE
The principal cemeteries and necropolisesCombatants who died during the Second World War were buried in either local cemeteries
(British and American combatants) or dedicated necropolises.
1914-1918 Beauvais French military necropolis Betz French military necropolis Blargies British military cemeteryCambronne-lès-Ribécourt French military necropolisCatenoy French military necropolisCompiègne French military necropolis Cuts French military necropolis Dompierre French military necropolis and German military necropolis Lassigny German military necropolisMéry-la-Bataille (Matz) French military necropolis Moulin-sous-Touvent German military necropolis Nampcel German military necropolis
Orry-la-Ville Dutch military cemetery Rémy French military necropolis Senlis French military necropolis Seringes-et-Nesles (Aisne) Oise-Aisne American cemeteryThiescourt French military necropolis and German military necropolis Tracy-le-Mont French military necropolis Verberie French military necropolis Vignemont French military necropolis and German military necropolis
1939-1945 Beauvais German military necropolisCambronne-lès-Ribécourt French military cemetery, including infantry Noyers-Saint-Martin Soviet military cemetery Noyon French military necropolis
FOCUS
In Beauvais, explore the First World War
B eauvais, the capital of Oise, was occupied and extensively bombed during WWI: no less than 200
bomb- and torpedo-drop sites were listed in 1919! Nor would the Second World War spare Beauvais, with bombings destroying 95% of the city centre. Casualties, both civilians and soldiers, were numerous. In 1922, the National Necropolis of Beauvais, created on Rue d’Amiens within the former municipality of Marissel, gathered together the dead from the temporary cemeteries of Cempuis, Grandvilliers and Beauvais. But Beauvais was also involved in the peace process, as the decision-making centre at the heart of the Great War military strategy. On 3 April 1918, the Beauvais conference of Allied powers entrusted General Ferdinand Foch with supreme command of the Allied armies: the historic Beauvais agreements would prove decisive in the march toward the liberation of first Picardy, then all of France. A giant step toward the final emotional victory and the explosive joy of the armistice! Today labelled a “City of Art and History”, Beauvais invites you to explore the First
DThe Greater
Beauvais Tourist Office1, rue Beauregard60000 Beauvais
M +33 (0)3 44 15 30 30 T www.beauvaistourisme.fr
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World War: ask for the dedicated document at the Greater Beauvais Tourist Office.
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"A simple, plain style, faces or hands, nothing human is
forgotten."Marie-Thérèse Ramond
DThe Historical
Figurine MuseumPlace de Piegaro
60550 Verneuil-En-Halatte M +33 (0)3 44 20 26 04
T www.memoiredesmurs.com Xmap 2
THE SERGE RAMOND MUSEUM
A whispering museum
A visit to the Serge Ramond Museum, named after its brilliant creator, is to listen to the stones silently share
with us the day-to-day lives of past men. As unique as the talent of its “stage director”, this museum is a fascinating, subtle blend of art and history: graffiti from the Neolithic Period to the Second World War offers enchanted visitors a chronological and moving “Lascaux”.
The soldiers’ engravings: the museum’s most singular collectionCarved into stone, the messages left by the WWI soldiers communicate their courage and hope for peace. Their cries of fear, of pain, of revolt etch into the marble of our collective memory the piercing refrain “no more war”. Imagining these men, these French, American and German soldiers, sculpting the walls of the dark, cold underground quarries that they used as
shelters, camps or hospitals, allows us to explore their dreams and anxieties. They remind us of the inestimable value of regained serenity, of the happiness of living in peace, out in the open air.
Among the represented sites:Machemont (the Montigny quarries)
and Thiescourt (the Chauffour quarry), with inscriptions sculpted by French soldiers.
The Confrécourt quarries, part of which served as a hospital, notably occupied by the 1st Zouaves Regiment.
Bucy-le-Long: English, German and French emblems.
The Chemin des Dames, Braye-en-Laonnois, Nanteuil-la-Fosse and Rouge-Maison: Arrival of the Americans in February 1918, and French and German military symbols.
Many other surprising discoveries await visitors to this one-of-a-kind museum.
Read about the visit to the Serge Ramond Museum by our “Oise-trotter” Marie-Jeanne at:framboisez-vous.com
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LEARN MORE
The only one of its kindBetween 1901 and 1927, two large
legacies by Alfred Ternisien and Arthur de Marsy allowed the Compiègne town hall to welcome 30,000 figurines. The collection continued to grow and the Historical Figurine Museum was finally founded in 1949. The museum was later expanded and benefitted from an extensive renovation, and today is home to over 150,000 figurines given full expression by a creative pertinent scenography. The museum also organizes fun workshops for children!
THE HISTORICAL FIGURINE MUSEUM
Miniature soldiers of the Great War!
T hese astonishing figurines, from 6 to 20 cm in height, accomplish the amazing feat of immersing the
public in the heart of French history, from antiquity to the Second World War. Frozen in the rigour of their historical reconstructions and yet so alive, the 150,000 figurines peopling this museum of miniature sculptures are sure to delight curious visitors of all ages. A truly amazing history lesson.
DThe Historical Figurine Museum
28, place de l’Hôtel de Ville 60200 Compiègne M +33 (0)3 44 20 26 04 T www.musee-figurine.fr
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Our “Oise-trotter” Marie-Jeanne shares her visit to the Historical Figurine Museum at:framboisez-vous.com
"A day will come when canons will be shown in museums…
with amazement at how they ever could have been!"
Victor Hugo
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THE AVIATION MUSEUM
Take flight for freedom
Covering 1,000 m2, home to 1,000 authentic objects and 1,600 photographs and documents: the
Warluis Aviation Museum offers a fascinating journey through aeronautical history, but above all it shares the stories of the aviators at the heart of the tragic Second World War. In the cockpits were men, and heroes! New objects are regularly added to this one-of-a-kind collection in France, tracing a portion of the region's rich history. A heritage site favouring encounters and exchanges, run by an association of volunteers, a rendezvous for aviation enthusiasts, a lesson in courage, a historical fresco accessible to all visitors...
¢ Museum founded in 1995 by the private collector Jacques Maillard, built upon his own collection of objects from the Beauvais-Tillé military aerodrome, a former German base.
¢ Focusing on the aviation and pilots of the Second World War.
¢ Collection divided into various themes.
• Airplane engines, of German, American, English and French manufacture.
• French section: diverse objects, scale models and photographs.
• English section: scale models, pilot equipment and a Spitfire’s instrument panel.
• American section: instrument panels of a B17 and a B25 Mitchell, the propeller of a C47, and the personal items of U.S.A.A.F. pilots.
• German section: scale models, instrument panels, part of an ME109, and a restored V-1 flying bomb.
DThe Warluis Aviation Museum
Rue des Bruyères60 430 Warluis
M +33 (0)3 44 89 28 23 T www.museedelaviation-warluis.com
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« If you’re interested in planes and their history”, our “Oise-trotter” Roger will take you on a tour of Warluis at:framboisez-vous.com
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THE MONTIGNY QUARRIES
Life-size archives
T his uniquely beautiful site invites visitors to explore an out-of-the-ordinary subterranean world
combining the history of men and the history of events. Quarrymen, the inhabitants of troglodytic homes and WWI soldiers have handed down to us this remarkable heritage: life-size archives to browse as you would the pages of a moving anthology.
The Montigny stone quarries, for the most part exploited during the 18th and 19th centuries, were used as shelters by combatants of the Great War. French army units transformed the quarries into quarters, command posts, first-aid sta-tions, kitchens, chapels and a military hospital. A place of respite “sheltered from the hell above”, whose remaining sculptures and adornments bring us suddenly closer to these men at war.
An association created in 2008, La Machemontoise, is responsible for the rehabilitation of these quarries, today open to the public and the setting of nu-merous activities and events.
DLa Machemontoise Association
7, rue des vignes 60150 Machemont M +33 (0)3 44 76 43 22 M +33 (0)6 74 20 34 20
T www.lescarrieresdemontigny.fr Xmap 5
eRégis Bouchain
President of "La Machemontoise" associationOise Tourisme : What makes the Montigny quarries stand out?RB : For their being partially troglodytic, thanks to the quarrymen who dug directly into the limestone for their lodgings, with a population estimated at nearly 200 inhabitants! During the Great War, the site was occupied by the French army. A military hospital was there set up, which allowed the quarries to remain French despite frequent assaults by the enemy located just nearby. Numerous regiments succeeded one another, including the 98th Infantry Regiment, the 11th Territorial Infantry Regiment and the Foreign Legion.OT : A historical anecdote to share with us?RB : At the end of the First World War, this site was not abandoned. The quarries were used for the growing of button mushrooms and chicory up until 1960! The troglodytic housing also wel-comed new residents up until the 1970s.OT : How may one visit the site?RB : For safety reasons, those persons who would like to enter the site must be accompa-nied by a member of our association, if no on-site event is scheduled at the time. Numerous events are organized throughout the year: guided tours, concerts, readings, spectacles, hikes, etc. All information at: www.lescarrieresdemontigny.fr
Read about the visit to the Montigny quarries by our “Oise-trotter” Judith at:framboisez-vous.com
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THE CHIRY-OURSCAMP ABBEY
Spectacular ruins
A ll that remains of this 12th-century abbey, occupied by the Germans and shelled by the French in 1915,
are the ruins rising toward the heavens. This breathtakingly beautiful site leads visitors on a long journey through French history. The abbey was built during the 12th century upon the foundations of an earlier structure built in 641 by the future Saint Eligius, counsellor to King Dagobert. According to the legend, Eligius even tamed a bear, wonderfully useful for heavy work, which explains the name Ourscamp or "Bear Camp".
The subsequent centuries and wars left their mark on the abbey, pillaged during the Hundred Years War, partially re-constructed in the late 16th century,
resold following the French Revolution, transformed into first a hospital, then a cotton factory (one of the most beautiful in France), and finally occupied starting on 31 August 1914.
Devastated by the Great WarDuring the First World War, the Germans used the abbey to store petrol and muni-tions, and they also rested there, 2 km from the frontline. The French shelled this position in 1915, leaving only ruins. The cotton mill was not rebuilt following the war. In 1941, the abbey was resusci-tated with the arrival of monks who still inhabit the site and have largely opened it to the public.
The Deux Vallées Tourist Information Centre is situated just opposite the abbey and its ruins.
Various memorial walks set out from the centre to explore the surroundings. Thanks to
the "Red Line" video-guide, relive key moments of the local battles (see p. 32).
DThe Deux Vallées
Tourist Information Centre2 bis Place St Éloi
60138 Chiry-Ourscamp M +33 (0)3 44 44 03 73 T www.deuxvallees.fr
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EMBLEMATIC COMPIÈGNE, 1914-1918
The joy of victory
A crossroads at the heart of the Great War and a strategic department as the final rampart
protecting Paris, Oise was also the first department to be liberated by the French and hosted the signing of the armistice in Compiègne, which subsequently became a symbol of victory and peace.
"Here, on 11 November 1918, the criminal pride of the German empire was VANQUISHED by the free peoples it had sought
to enslave."Inscription on the so-called “vengeful slab” in the centre of the
Armistice Clearing at Compiègne.
The “Rethondes clearing”, a peaceful place in the heart of the Compiègne Forest, suddenly entered the history books, symbolizing in the eyes of the entire world the end of the Great War hostilities, of four years of horrifying conflict.
The railway carriage used by Marshal Ferdinand Foch as his headquarters had been stationed in the clearing since the evening of 7 November, on a two-track rail line built by the French artillery during the war.
There, at 2:15 in the morning of 11 November, the Marshal received the Germans, who agreed to sign the armistice at 5:15 AM. The accord would come into effect on “the 11th day of the 11th month at exactly 11 o’clock”.
"Officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers of the Allied armies: after having
resolutely stopped the enemy, you attacked without respite for months on end, with unflagging
faith and energy. You have won the greatest battle in
all of History, and saved the most sacred cause: the world’s
freedom. Be proud, for you have adorned your flags with an immortal glory. Posterity
reserves for you its gratitude."Marshal Ferdinand Foch addressing the Allied armies, 12
November 1918.While the original railway carriage
was destroyed by Hitler following the
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CThe perspective of
Jean-Yves BonnardHistorian
Oise Tourisme : In your opinion, what was the most significant event of the Great War in Oise and why?
JYB : Without a doubt, the signing of the armistice in the Compiègne Forest, on 11 November 1918: an event that resonated and continues to resonate around the world. The explosion of joy in all the towns and villages of France expressed not only the pleasure of having won the war, but also and above all that it was over. So all eyes were
focused on this little corner of Picardy, a clearing lost in the forest, near the devastated towns. This event was lent even more significance for French national history when the same location was once again chosen in 1940 for a new armistice, that of the German revenge. This act, as well as the Clearing’s destruction – ordered by Hitler, who visited the site on 21 June 1940 – well illustrate that the Second World War was the result of the First, which had in no way solved the period's European antagonisms.
DThe Armistice Clearing
60200 Compiègne M +33 (0)3 44 85 14 18
T www.musee-armistice-14-18.fr Xmap 3
Learn about the visit to the Armistice Clearing by our “Oise-trotter” Roger at:framboisez-vous.com
vengeful armistice of 1940 (see p. 21), its duplicate reveals everything regarding this crucial moment, including where all the different figures were positioned at the time of signing. Next to the carriage, the Armistice Memorial Museum is home to nearly 800 black-and-white stereoscopic photographs, striking testimonials to the lives of the soldiers, to the mobilization effort, to Verdun and to the victory celebrations. One grasps the great hope of once again living a peaceful existence, with the conviction that this would be "the war to end all wars".
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MUSÉE TERRITOIRE 14-18 – "THE WWI TERRITORIAL HERITAGE MUSEUM"
Set out from Rethondes to explore, understand, remember, share and travel through history.
A djoining the Rethondes church (whose bells, the first to ring in the armistice, would be rung until they
cracked!), the old presbytery has housed since 2014 the "Discovery Centre", offi-cial gateway to the Musée Territoire 14-18 / "The WWI Territorial Heritage Museum". This modern heritage centre,
16“Discovery Centre” © Communauté de Communes des Lisières de l'Oise
overflowing with fascinating photos and firsthand accounts, is a veritable orienta-tion centre dedicated to the "Red Line", the old front line passing through Oise. It introduces visitors to the local history of the Great War, then invites them to pur-sue their exploration by following the itinerary of this unique open-air museum
dotted with memorial sites. The 60-kilo-metre network of some twenty thematic sites evokes all aspects of this terrible conflict, including its effects on the re-gion’s population. The ideal point of departure for setting out to discover the department's numerous interactive heri-tage sites.
DEspace Découverte (“Discovery Centre”) 19, rue de Verdun -F-
60153 Rethondes M +33 (0)3 44 90 14 18 T www.musee-territoire.fr
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The Compiègne Palace: hospital and Supreme Headquarters
From the autumn of 1914 to the spring of 1917, the Compiègne Palace was transformed into a 340-bed hospital. Located behind the front line, it welcomed wounded soldiers in the sumptuous setting of the imperial residence. Its role as a hospital, direly needed given the great number of casualties, also contributed to its relative preservation, as the palace would suffer little damage during the war. In the spring of 1917, the last of the wounded left the royal palace, which subsequently housed the Supreme Headquarters of the French army up until June 1918.
DThe Compiègne Palace
Place du Général de Gaulle60200 Compiègne M +33 (0)3 44 38 47 00
T www.palaisdecompiegne.fr Xmap 3
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1914-1918
The “Red Line” marks Oise
1918
1917
1916
1915
1914
3 August Germany declares war on France.
30 August – 3 September German rush into Oise.
6-13 September First Battle of the Marne. The French push the Germans back to the Aisne.
15 September Beginning of the “Race to the Sea”, starting near Noyon. The western front stretches all the way to the Channel.
October Start of the "static war" along the Lassigny-Dreslincourt-Autrêches “Red Line”.
18-26 October The Yser and Artois battles.
29 November The French Army sets up its Supreme Headquarters in Oise for the duration of the war.
14 February Franco-British conference, fixing the plans for a great Allied offensive in the Somme.
21 February Beginning of the Battle of Verdun.
1 July to mid-November The Battle of the Somme, with very heavy losses but little ground gained.
21 March Start of the German offensive in Picardy.Battles of Noyon, Mont-Renaud and Plémont.
3 April Allied conference in Beauvais.
9-11 June German offensive in Oise and the Battle of Matz.
10 August Start of the final French offensive in Oise, finally liberated on 2 September.
11 November Signing of the Franco-German Armistice in the Compiègne Forest.
22 April The second Ypres and Artois battles.
6-16 June Battle of Quennevières.
6-8 December Second Allied conference in Chantilly, to plan the Allied strategy for 1916.
January The French Supreme Headquarters is set up in Beauvais, home also to the various Allied services.
19 March German withdrawal to the Hindenburg Line: the Allies enter Péronne and Bapaume.
16 April French offensive of the Chemin des Dames in the Aisne.
28 November Russia requests the Armistice.
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LOCATION MAP
Memorial sites and tourist offices1914-1918
en-VexinChaumont
Méru
Saint-Germer-de Fly
NoyonChiry-Ourscamp
Creil
Senlis
ClermontVic-sur-Aisne
Crapeaumesnil
en-chausséeSaint-Just-
Grandvilliers
en-BeauvaisisMarseille-
le-GrandCrèvecoeur
Breteuil
Compiègne Rethondes
Chantilly
Pont-Sainte-Maxence
Ermenonville
Saint-Leud'Esserent Crépy-en-Valois
Verneuil-en-Halatte
Pierrefonds
Machemont
Courcelles-Epayelles
CutsCarlepont
Beauvais
Warluis
Tracy-le-Mont Autrêches
Méry-la-Bataille
Longueil-Annel
To Amiens
To Lille
To Reims
To Rouen
To ParisTo Roissy CDG Airport
2
13 7
9
10
11
8
5
6
4
The "Red Line" route
The Greater Beauvais Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 15 30 30
The Chantilly Tourist Office
+33 (0)3 44 67 37 37
The Chiry-Ourscamp Tourist Information Centre
+33 (0)3 44 44 03 73
The Greater Compiègne Tourist Office
+33 (0)3 44 40 01 00
The Greater Creil Tourist Information Bureau
+33 (0)3 44 55 16 07
The Pays de Valois Tourist OfficeCrépy-en-Valois
+33 (0)3 44 59 03 97
The Ermenonville Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 54 01 58
The "Green Picardy" Regional Tourist OfficeMarseille-en-Beauvaisis+33 (0)3 44 46 32 20
Les Sablons Regional Tourist OfficeMéru
+33 (0)3 44 84 40 86
The Noyon Regional Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 44 21 88
The Communautés de Communes des Lisières de l'Oise Tourist Office in Pierrefonds
+33 (0)3 44 42 81 44
The Pont-Sainte-Maxence Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 72 35 90
The Pays de Bray Tourist OfficeSaint-Germer-de-Fly
+33 (0)3 44 82 62 74
The Pierre Sud Oise Tourist OfficeSaint-Leu-d'Esseurent
+33 (0)3 44 56 38 10
The Senlis Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 53 06 40
The Verneuil-en-Halatte Tourist Office+33 (0)3 44 25 21 00
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LOCATION MAP
Memorial sites and tourist offices1939-1945
en-VexinChaumont
Méru
Saint-Germer-de Fly
NoyonChiry-Ourscamp
Creil
Senlis
ClermontVic-sur-Aisne
Crapeaumesnil
en-chausséeSaint-Just-
Grandvilliers
en-BeauvaisisMarseille-
le-GrandCrèvecoeur
Breteuil
Compiègne Rethondes
Chantilly
Pont-Sainte-Maxence
Ermenonville
Saint-Leud'Esserent Crépy-en-Valois
Verneuil-en-Halatte
Pierrefonds
Machemont
Courcelles-Epayelles
CutsCarlepont
Beauvais
Warluis
Tracy-le-Mont Autrêches
Méry-la-Bataille
Longueil-Annel
To Amiens
To Lille
To Reims
To Rouen
To ParisTo Roissy CDG Airport
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9
10
11
8
5
6
4
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1939-1945
Dark years
1945
1944
1943
1942
1941
1940
1939
3 September France and Great Britain declare war on Germany.
Winter 1939/1940 The “Phoney War”, period of waiting behind the Maginot Line. Construction of the Chauvineau Line.
8-9 May The Germans surrender.
The French Resistance is organized and intensified, in a particularly strategic department.
29 March Petition by the disaster victims of Beauvais. The population revolts against the deprivations.
June 1941 Royallieu becomes Fronstalag 122, internment and transit camp for over 50,000 victims of the Nazis up until August 1944.
Spring Parachutings begin in Oise.
9 September Allied air raid on the Beauvaisis.
1 November The “Departmental Liberation Committee” is secretly created.
Spring Powerful German offensive cuts through the Ardennes. The inhabitants of Oise fear an invasion via the Oise corridor.
May-June German bombings around Compiègne and Beauvais.
8 June Start of the German invasion.
9-10-11 June Massacre of the Senegalese infantrymen.
13 June Beauvais is officially occupied by the Germans. Massive exodus.
14 June The Germans enter Paris.
18 June General de Gaulle makes his appeal from London.
21 June Hitler in Compiègne.
22 June Signing of the Compiègne armistice. Oise falls within the occupied zone.
3 March and 8 April Bataillon de France arrests in Compiègne.
1 May Numerous attacks by the Francs-Tireurs et Partisans (FTP) Resistance group in Montataire, Chambly and Compiègne.
22 June The Feldkommandantur 638 sets up camp in Beauvais.
6 June The Normandy landings: D-Day.
19 and 23 June Attacks by the Maquis des Usages à Crisolles and the Maquis de Ronquerolles Resistance groups.
May-August Bombing of Oise.
30 August – 2 September Liberation of Beauvais, Chantilly, Senlis, Creil, Clermont, Crépy-en-Valois, Compiègne and Noyon.
11 November “Purification” of the Armistice Clearing in Compiègne.
21
EMBLEMATIC COMPIÈGNE, 1939-1945
Humiliation and rehabilitation
When the Germans won the Battle of France in June 1940, Hitler took his revenge: he wanted to
symbolically wash away the affronting armistice of 1918, which he considered a sullying of his country's history. For the signing of the French surrender, he chose no other location than the Compiègne Clearing! He had the original railway carriage placed at the exact same location of the 1918 armistice, and immediately following the signing of the French surrender, he had the carriage along with the site's other principal monuments removed to Berlin and the clearing destroyed. All that was allowed to remain was the statue of Marshal Ferdinand Foch, lost in the wood, left to contemplate what no longer remained. But the WWI armistice could not be erased. Soon after 1945, France in turn
would exorcise its affront. The so-called “vengeful slab” was brought back from Germany, along with the monument presented by the Parisian daily Le Matin in honour of the French army's liberation of Alsace-Lorraine. These important symbols were restored and returned to the rehabilitated clearing. In addition, a building was later constructed to house the 2439D railway carriage, replacing the original carriage destroyed in April 1945 in Crawinkel, Thuringia (former East Germany).
Today, the site once again symbolizes peace in the eyes of the world. Indeed, the clearing just recently welcomed the “Peace Ring” monument designed by Clara Halter, with miniature replicas crafted and sold by the Mauboussin jewellery house. A portion of the profits is reinvested in the memorial.
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Learn about the visit to the memorial by our “Oise-trotter” Roger at:framboisez-vous.com
© Oise Tourisme / Benoît Fougeirol
The Internment and Deportation Memorial: fighting oblivion
Located in Compiègne, at the Royallieu Camp, this memorial takes visitors on a moving journey through History by
exploring the painful history of this spe-cific site. For a better understanding of this particularly sombre period, and as a forceful proclamation of “never again!" For as François Ferrieux pointed out upon the memorial’s inauguration, “the ideas of torturers and bullies prosper in the darkness of oblivion”.
The “Wall of Names” pays tribute to the 50,000 prisoners of this transit camp set up by the Germans. Between 1941 and 1944, they would experience the hell of internment and deportation.
The sober, modern scenography em-phasizes the force and emotion of the firsthand accounts. Historical exhibition in the three remaining barracks, memo-rial garden, chapel, escape tunnel…
DThe Internment
and Deportation Memorial 2 bis, avenue des Martyrs de la Liberté
60200 Compiègne M +33 (0)3 44 96 37 00
T www.memorial-compiegne.fr Xmap 3
An unforgettable discovery of the pri-soners’ day-to-day life.
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COMPIÈGNE – THE ARMISTICE CLEARING
Peace honoured in all languages
T he city of Compiègne commissioned the artist Clara Halter to create this monumental sculpture in commemoration of the First World War centenary. This symbolic ring is engraved with 52 gilded translations of the word Peace. 1 ½ tonnes of patinated bronze facing Ferdinand Foch's railway carriage. A perfect circle 3.5 metres in diameter, symbolizing serenity
and plenitude in the heart of this circular clearing. A magnificent reminder that while the world's nations have at times formed alliances of war, they can always choose to assemble for peace.
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Military cemetery of Tracy-le-Mont
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LEARN MOREFind all the memorial walks at the
website:www.oisetourisme-memoire.com
Free downloading of all itineraries.
Discovery centre
Necropolis
"Red Line" route
Quarry Major memorial site
Museum Video-guide
Tourist office and information
desk
By foot By bike By car
MEMORIAL WALKS
When nature evokes History1914-1918 1939-1945
"Certain places impose the necessity of their presence, and their magnetism makes it feel impossible to be elsewhere. When passing through them, one has the conviction that
they were waiting for us... It's not a discovery, but a return. Time slips away... time stops, the light is no longer that which bathes our everyday life, another world rushes
up, within which we are about to enter. Another dimension of reality is revealed, marked by silence, serenity and beauty."
David Le Breton, Éloge des chemins et de la lenteur
S ites testifying to past battles preserve the memory of those men who took part in the fighting. By foot, bike, horse or car, following one's smartphone, each visitor is free to explore at his or her own pace the region’s moving World War heri-
tage trails. A simple way to remember and commemorate the past, to better understand the human tolls of these conflicts, to become aware of the landscapes' evolutions, and to discover the region's diversity of heritage treasures.
A veritable open-air museum, the Musée Territoire 14-18 ("The WWI Territorial Heritage Museum") comprises some two dozen representative sites, pre-senting and recreating Great War history, the life of WWI soldiers, key events, nearly forgotten anecdotes... Stretching over sixty kilometres, this history-rich route offers hiking trails, guided tours, exhibitions and other museums evoking the manner in which the territory and its populations experienced the war, on either side of the fixed frontline. T www.musee-territoire-1418.fr
The Musée Territoire 14-18 / "The WWI Territorial Heritage Museum"
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MÉRY-LA-BATAILLE
The first tanks of the “modern war”
J une 1918. The flank of the German army, smoothly advancing toward
Compiègne, was counter-attacked on the plateau west of Ressons-sur-Matz by the French force of infantry and tanks rapidly assembled by General Mangin in order to stop the grand enemy offensive. Though heavy losses were suffered, this terrible episode marked the beginning of the reconquering of the territory lost back in 1914. Starting in Méry-la-Bataille, the 75-km itinerary of "The Battle of Matz Tanks" is dotted with 17 illustrated information panels and 11 viewpoint indicators relating the violent fighting that took place on this Picard plateau. The advance of the 200 Saint-Chamond and Schneider tanks
definitively blocked the German advance in this sector, and signalled a watershed in warfare. The introduction of this technology – with tanks on the grounds and planes in the air – would have a powerful impact on strategy and tactics.
A shorter itinerary, the “Special Artillery 38 Loop” (4.3 km) explores and explains the Battle of Matz in the sector of Lataule.
Preserving the memory of these tanksThese heritage itineraries are organized by the "Remembering the Tanks of June 1918" association, presided by Bruno Jurkiewicz, the author of several
extensively researched works on this particular aspect of the First World War. The association welcomes visitors in the old town hall of Courcelles-Epayelles, which also houses a permanent exhibition.
D"Remembering the Tanks of June 1918" association
Bruno Jurkiewicz K [email protected]
The Noyon Regional Tourist Office M 33 (0)3 44 44 21 88
T www.noyon-tourisme.com Xmap 8
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SENLIS
The “Martyred City of Senlis” itinerary
5 km dotted with 8 stops: a two-hour walk to understand how Senlis experienced the Great War. Its
strategic position along the Germans’ march toward Paris subjected Senlis to particularly bloody episodes, with pillaging, sacking, destructions, fires (110 buildings along the main avenue, from the railway station to the hospital, were ravaged on 2 September 1914) and above all summary executions. The town’s mayor, Eugène Odent, was one of the first victims. Created by the “Senlis History and Archaeology Society”, this urban heritage trail allows visitors to explore Senlis’ experience of the Great War, including its post-war reconstruction, by discovering its
different districts, vestiges, monuments and commemorative plaques. In 1920, in honour of its “exemplary courage throughout the conflict”, the city was awarded the prestigious Croix de Guerre military decoration, still adorning the war memorial, the hospital, the national necropolis and the town hall entryway. Its apt motto reads “by fire and by my blood, I engendered victory”.
Be sure to visit the Hôtel Saint Martin, Supreme Allied Headquarters in 1918, where Marshal Ferdinand Foch finalized the Armistice conditions and from which he set out for Rethondes in the evening of 10 November.
DThe Senlis Tourist Office
Place du Parvis Notre-Dame60300 Senlis
M 33 (0)3 44 53 06 40 T www.senlis-tourisme.fr
Xmap 9
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NEARBY
A trail to explore Chiry-OurscampThe first village along the route to Paris to
fall into the hands of the Germans, Chiry-Ourscamp can be explored in 3 hours, thanks to this 7-km walk dotted with 13 informative stops. Discover the kommandantur (German military headquarters), the war memorial and the ruins of the abbey and its cotton mill (destroyed in 1915), as well as a splendid panoramic view of the Oise Valley that also encompasses the German front line.
There is also a small loop (under 4 km) to explore.
DThe Deux Vallées Tourist
Information Centre2 bis place St Éloi
60138 Chiry-Ourscamp M +33 (0)3 44 44 03 73
ÉLINCOURT-SAINTE-MARGUERITE - CHIRY-OURSCAMP
The Quarries Itinerary
I n the heart of the rolling Thiescourt Forest (the "Little Switzerland of Picardy"), the “Quarries of the Great
War” heritage itinerary leads visitors to the old quarries and underground military chambers and passageways used during WWI.
These sites testify to their occupation by the soldiers for months on end. The setting of the so-called "war of positions”, this strategic zone still presents numerous
vestiges (trenches, shell craters, ruins, etc.) that have been preserved and made accessible to visitors by several historical heritage associations.
In addition to testifying to the lives of WWI soldiers on the front, the quarries of Montigny, La Botte, Saint-Albin and Cinq-Pilliers also conceal other treasures: troglodytic dwellings and a conservation site for threatened bats.
This 38-km itinerary can be divided into two parts, and welcomes walkers, bicyclists and horse riders.
DInformation
T www.cc-pays-sources.org T www.musee-territoire-1418.fr
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TRACY-LE-MONT
The Great War trails
T he heart of the village of Tracy-le-Mont was located only 1.5 km from the first frontlines of Oise. This sec-
tor was frequently targeted by German shells and several times the setting of violent battles. The most deadly attacks occurred in June 1915 during the Battle of Quennevières, the first operation led by General Nivelle. By the end of the war, the factories of this one dynamic area and two thirds of its houses would be destroyed. The village remains heavily marked by the conflict, and a century later, its population is still inferior to that of the pre-war period.
The infirmary, the “Zouaves Hillock”, the wash house built by the soldiers, the national necropolis, the quarry camp… The Tracy-le-Mont itinerary tells the story of this “period of iron and of fire”, the stories of the men and women, the civi-lians and soldiers who suffered and died
there. Life-size silhouettes of soldiers mark the trail, rendering the dramatic history of this memorial village all the more apparent, and inspiring the visi-tors’ respect and gratitude. The military cemetery, home to the remains of 3,200 soldiers, well illustrates the awful scale of the disaster: “Today where we reap the wheat, hails of bullets once mowed down the men".
Starting at the church, the easy 6-km walk explores the village, the woods, the plateau and the subterranean galleries. This unique memorial trail in the heart of nature also encompasses the Maison du Garde quarry, named after the guard-house located only a few hundred metres away, and from which General Nivelle oversaw the Quennevières assault. This quarry was also used to store the first poison gases, used along this front in 1916. Deeply moving sites that preserve
and bring to life the region's World War heritage.
"The living can no longer teach the dead, but the dead
continue to instruct the living." Châteaubriand
DThe Communautés de Communes
des Lisières de l'Oise Tourist Office in Pierrefonds
Place de l’hôtel de Ville60 350 Pierrefonds M +33 (0)3 44 42 81 44
T www.pierrefonds-tourisme.net Xmap 10
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AUTRÊCHES
In the footsteps of the 35th Infantry Regiment
A t Autrêches, for nearly 30 months, the enemy forces faced off. The theatre of violent fighting between
the Germans and the French soldiers of the 35th and 41st Infantry Regiments and the target of especially frequent shelling, Autrêches would pay a heavy tribute to the Great War, with over 95% of the vil-lage destroyed by 1918, leaving the houses, château and church in ruins. The subsequent reconstruction would prove long, with the village having to wait until 1937 to inaugurate its new church with its new bells. Its renovation would conti-nue up until 1956, and today a “Square of Peace” adjoins the edifice.
An easy 6-km signposted heritage walk allows curious visitors of all ages to discover WWI graffiti, inscriptions, the
“prisoners' farm” and the frontline pla-teau. Enamelled plaques bearing the photographs of soldiers killed during the First World War are attached to the wall of the municipal cemetery.
At the place known as “La Charbonnière”, a commemorative sign pays tribute to Corporal Vigniau and four machine gunners (including a sol-dier nicknamed “Petit Julot” by his comrades) of the 246th Infantry Regiment, who fell in the line of duty on 20 August 1918.
Such fascinating vestiges and battle scars allow today’s visitors to pay tribute to all these combatants who died for their homelands, while also admiring the village's architectural and natural heritage.
DThe Communautés de Communes
des Lisières de l'Oise Tourist Office in Pierrefonds
Place de l’hôtel de Ville60 350 Pierrefonds M +33 (0)3 44 42 81 44
T www.pierrefonds-tourisme.net Xmap 10
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NOYON
A video-guided itinerary to relive the occupation
B orrow a tablet from the tourist office or download the application onto your smartphone, and set out to
explore, at your own pace, this town of Oise so deeply marked by the Great War, due to its strategic “stopper” position. Indeed, Noyon was awarded the Legion of Honour decoration on 17 July 1920 for its great suffering, courage and eminent merits in the service of the French nation!
The easy-to-follow, 2.5-km video-guided itinerary offers numerous interactive firsthand accounts, images, videos and archives. A unique way to explore and experience the German occupation and the conflict's key events that so deeply marked the area’s landscapes and inhabitants. History with
a capital “H” and anecdotes complement each other, from the historic centre to the necropolises. Vestiges of the shelling that destroyed 80% of the town are particularly striking and evocative.
The occupation violently burnt its mark into the history of Noyon, this small town of Saint Medardus and Saint Eligius, whose reconstruction would not be complete until after the Second World War. Today, this “Town of Art and History” offers visitors a remarkable architectural heritage, combining Art Nouveau and singular medieval edifices.
DThe Noyon Regional Tourist Office
M +33 (0)3 44 44 21 88 T www.noyon-tourisme.com
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Noyon in the spotlight“And yet, for a year now, the Germans
have been in Noyon." This famous phrase was written by
Clémenceau on 25 August 1915, in an article denouncing the Viviani government, as a political weapon meant to incite military action. The citation would become emblematic and stir all of France, and Clémenceau would adopt it as a leitmotiv: “The Germans are in Noyon, and we talk politics… misery of miseries…” The small town became a symbol. In a letter to a friend, Marcel Proust would echo the sentiment: "It isn't easy being cheerful, or even desiring to be, so long as the Germans 'are in Noyon' and elsewhere". For this reason, the eventual German withdrawal and the liberation of Noyon in 1917 were later underlined by numerous official visits by France’s most important political figures and dignitaries, receiving significant media attention. The contrast is terrible between these happy, splendid images full of hope, and the desolation of this martyred town; indeed, in 1918, Clémenceau would say, “The vision of Noyon is a vision of terror, and this terror is so far beyond us that it no longer touches us.”
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T he young investigative journalist Augustin Berger (named after Corporal Auguste Thin, who
designated the unknown soldier transferred from Verdun to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris), has chosen to share with the public the extensive fascinating study he carried out on the Great War’s western front, via the application “WWI Stories”.
Dotted with archival documents and diverse revelations, this historic heritage trail leads visitors to discover the greatest battles of the First World War. A “Red Line" echoing the red lines used by the soldiers to designate the French frontlines on their topographical maps. A line of fire, the colour of danger, pain and spilled blood, a line defended by thousands of soldiers in the hope of hearing the bugle sound the end of the war, with so many perishing in their fight for freedom.
Along the Armistice discovery trail, a few Oise stops commented by Augustin Berger are particularly emblematic: Noyon, Lataule, Plessier-de-Roye, Carlepont, Longueil-Annel, Vingré,
Nampcel, Chiry-Ourscamp, Tracy-le-Mont and finally the famous clearing near Rethondes. The journalist’s commentaries directly immerse the listener in the local Great War history, providing an additional, moving perspective to the intimate on-site visits.
D« Histoires 14-18 » (“WWI Stories”)
A free application to explore the Musée Territoire 14-18 / “The WWI Territorial
Heritage Museum”Official application of the “Great War
Tourism and Heritage” association.Available at the App Store and via
Google Play.
T zevisit.com/application/histoires1418
MEMORIAL WALKS
The “Red Line” during the digital age
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The German military necropolis of Nampcel
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CARLEPONT - CUTS
“The Zouaves Hillock” The sacrifice of the African soldiers
A ccording to legend, beneath this mound lie the remains of four soldiers, including three French
sappers buried alive by the explosion of a German mine on 23 December 1915, which caused the collapse of the tunnel they were attempting to dig beneath the imperial lines.
Located at the position known as the “Mushroom” during the First World War, this site most likely took its name from the many African troops present within this frontline zone starting on 15 September 1914, notably the Zouaves (principally made up of home troops) and Algerians from the 37th Infantry Division.
A powerful symbol of the war of mines that raged within this sector, the “Zouaves Hillock” – listed as a national historic monument – pays tribute to all these men who risked their lives on the frontline of Oise. Just next to the hillock topped by a cross, a national memorial, the only
military monument dedicated to the Zouaves in France, honours these soldiers of the African army who participated in all of France’s wars. Comprising light infantry units, founded in 1830 and disbanded in 1962, this army corps is one of the most highly decorated in the history of the French armed forces.
The Zouaves fell by the hundreds in this area of Oise, in their heroic defence of Noyon, Carlepont, Cuts and Moulin-sous-Touvent. These men uprooted from the colonies to reinforce the French army were straightaway thrust into a terrible baptism of fire, from the bloody violence of which they would not be spared. Courage and sacrifice.
Each year, a national ceremony pays tribute to these men at the Quennevières Farm and in Carlepont.
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LEARN MORE
Reference works and heritage associations1914-1918 1939-1945
Reference works
Associations specialized in World War I history
Le Routard Picardie 14-18 2014
Topoguide : Dans les tracesde la Grande Guerre en Picardie…à pied
L’Oise est libérée Jean-Pierre Besse, Françoise Rosenzweig, 2004
14/18 dans l’Oise Jean-Yves Bonnard, 2014
L’Oise au cœur de la Grande Guerre Jean-Yves Bonnard, 2008
Rethondes, le jour où l’histoire s’estarrêtée : 11 novembre 1918 – 21 juin 1940 Jean-Yves Bonnard, 2008
Le Mont Renaud 1918,un rempart sur la route de Paris Jean-Yves Bonnard, Didier Guenaff, 2003.
Frontstalag 122 Compiègne-Royallieu Beate Husser, Jean-Pierre Besse, Françoise Rosenzweig, 2008
Images de l’Oise, 1918 à aujourd’hui Bruno Jurkiewicz, 2014
Etapes historiques et de mémoire du Compiégnois ONACVG de l’Oise
Etapes historiques et de mémoire du Noyonnais ONACVG de l’Oise
Patrimoine de la Grande Guerre (“Great War Heritage”)
T www.patrimoinedelagrandeguerre.com T [email protected]
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Juin 1918, Mémoire des chars (“Remembering the Tanks of June 1918”)
OISELAND OF MEMORY
www.oisetourisme-memoire.comMuseums, exhibitions, events, itineraries…Find on-line complete information on the memorial and heritage sites of Oise.
Oise TourismeDiscover every episode of our documentary
series on the First World War.
Oise < Picardy < France
Oise TourismeTourism Development and Booking Agency+33 (0)3 64 60 60 60
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“ Mem�y is life, ev� b�n by living � ps, and f� this reas� it is ev� ev�ving, �en to the dialectics of
remembrance and amnesia, unc�sci s of its successive def�mati�s, vuln�able to all utilizati�s and
manipulati�s, susceptible to l�g latencies and sudden revitalizati�s. Hist�y is the ev� problematic and
inc�plete rec�s�ucti� of that which is no l�g�… A representati� of the past, �ly a�ached to temp�al c�tinuities, to ev�uti�s. Mem�y is an ev� c�ent
phen�en�, a link �p�ienced in the et�nal present. ” Pierre Nora, Les lieux de mémoires, Paris, Gallimard, 1984.
OISELAND OF MEMORY
