NEWSLETTER N°1
HELP SUPPORT THE MEMORIAL
Verdun, Universal symbol of WWI,
the Great War
Inauguration of the renovated Memorial
February 21, 2016
Official launch of WWI Centennial
commemoration of the battle of Verdun
May 29, 2016
The Verdun Memorial, situated at the center of
the battlefield in an axis with the Douaumont
Ossuary, is one of the main European institutions
dedicated to World War 1.
Initially opened in 1967, it is scheduled
to reopen following an extensive two-year
renovation project including a recasting of its
museography and an upgrade and modernization
of its facilities. Despite the absence of remaining
survivors of the battle to witness the event,
the inauguration of the modernized Memorial
incontestably represents the centerpiece
of the Centennial commemoration of the battle
of Verdun.
True to the wishes of its founders, veterans
of the battle of Verdun, the configuration of
the renovated Memorial places the soldiers
who fought there as the focal point of the visit.
On display at the restored Memorial the visitor
will find some 2,000 objects from its permanent
collection, a multitude of photographs,
many original and heretofore unseen,
and an innovative audiovisual presentation, all
intended to evoke the experience of the battle
and the men who came from far and wide to fight
there. The visit will leave a lasting impression,
a depiction of the devastation engendered
by the single longest and most bloody military
engagement in the history of modern European
warfare.
Thierry Hubscher
Director of the Verdun Memorial
I
The Verdun Memorial :
A remarkable project
for an exceptional site.
Today, more than 45 years
since opening, it remains
more than ever necessary
to transmit the values
of peace and citizenship
to younger generations by
explaining the unspeakable,
the inexplicable,
the « uncommunicable »
as formulated by Maurice
Genevoix.
Immediately following
the armistice, Verdun
and the battlefront became
a site of pilgrimage for
survivors of the war and
their families. They erected
a small wooden cabin to house
objects and souvenirs of the
battle which were deposited
there. The idea of a proper
Memorial edifice was proposed
in 1939, but its realization
was interrupted by the
outbreak of World War II.
At the 1951 ceremonies
commemorating the 35th
anniversary of the Battle
of Verdun, and within the
context of reconciliation
between France and Germany,
a national committee for
the Memory of Verdun (CNSV)
was created, presided by
Maurice Genevoix. Genevoix,
World War 1 veteran seriously
wounded in the Battle of
the Marne, prolific author
of the tetralogy « Ceux
de 14 » (The Men of 1914)
and perpetual secretary
of the Académie Française
led the initiative.
Four years of work were
required to finish the
Memorial building which was
inaugurated in 1967. Conceived
as a reliquary, a testimony
to memory, veterans of
the battle participated in the
museography thus contributing
to the creation of an
emotion-filled environment
where objects of their daily
life in the trenches were
displayed. From the outset,
financing for the Memorial
came exclusively from private
donors.
By developing themes
providing the visitor with
an exhaustive vision of the
daily life of the battle as
experienced by the combatants,
the current project recasts
and revitalizes the Memorial
as a modern educational tool,
serving historic truths,
and adapted to a demanding
international public.
The extension, conceived by
the architectural firm Brochet
of Bordeaux and scenography
by consultants Le Conte
and Noirot, privileges
an emotional approach to the
battle. Through evocation
of the trenches, the
landscape of the battle and
the seasons through which it
was fought emerges a virtual
site museum containing
objects reconstituting the
battle.
A sense of total immersion
is facilitated by the
projection and juxtaposition
of images on glass panels,
accompanied simultaneously
with sounds of bombardments
similar to what the soldiers
on the front, as well as
anyone located up to 30 miles
away, would have heard.
The budget for the
renovation project is 12.5
million Euros. The initial
fundraising campaign was
launched simultaneously
in France and in the United
States with the goal of
raising 1 million Euros to
compliment 9 million Euros in
public funding. A conference
on the Great War, organized
in cooperation with the
French-American Foundation,
was held in New York on
October 24, 2014. A renewed
campaign, fully supported
by the diplomatic corps,
is currently in preparation
in order to raise funds
within the Franco-American
community in the United
States. Supplemental
fundraising activities
are in the planning stages
in order to mobilize a larger
public around this historic
commemoration.
II
Shared
Memory
Two thirds of the French army
fought in the battle, and as
such, all French families
were touched by the losses
engendered there. The Great
War is Verdun, battle-symbol
of the entire 1914 -1918 war.
A site of national remembrance
for the French, Verdun is
nevertheless a universal
symbol.
They shall not pass !
Verdun is emblematic of
the courage and abnegation
of the French and German
soldiers who fought there.
One prevailed irregardless
of the price to be paid.
The men, often quite young,
were confronted with
challenges beyond imagination
: seeking cover in deep holes
left by shelling, on ground
slippery and unstable, or
in the trenches, constantly
threatened by enemy fire and
by the prospect of being
buried alive. They froze
in the winter, were overcome
by thirst in the summer,
and generally exhausted
by the lack of sleep caused
by uninterrupted bombardment
and artillery fire. Units
remained at the front for
10-15 days, only to be
relieved provided they were
amongst the third that escaped
death, injury or capture.
Only an instinct for survival
and camaraderie allowed
them to hold on. Verdun,
the single longest battle
of the war, was the turning
point of the Great War.
The toll was unimaginable :
300 days and 300 nights of
continuous combat, of fire
and steel, mud and blood,
equally dramatic for the
millions of French and German
soldiers who participated
in the conflagration. 80% of
the French army participated
in the battle which drew
thousands of soldiers from
former French colonies
overseas.
Exposed to flamethrowers,
toxic gas, and an
uninterrupted deluge of
shelling, deafened by the
unabated thunder of 1,200
canons firing a million
shells on the first day
alone, some survived, many
did not. Even if the exact
number of casualties remains
undetermined, it is estimated
that 300,000 French and German
soldiers lost their lives
in the battle. Casualties
numbered 400,000, amongst
them 15 to 20,000 « gueules
cassées » or broken faces
– horribly disfigured – and
some 80,000 missing in action
thus making Verdun, along
with the Battle of the Somme,
the deadliest of the entire
conflict.
As a result, Verdun
became a memorial point
of reference for the entire
nation : pilgrimages,
ossuaries, cemeteries and
diverse monuments were
erected, all leading up
to the ceremony of September
22, 1984 which saw French
President François Mitterrand
hand-in-hand with German
Chancellor Helmut Kohl to
pay tribute to those who died
at Verdun thus sealing the
Franco- German reconciliation
initiated by Charles de
Gaulle and Konrad Adenauer.
III
The ever-present past,
archeology
in the Red Zone
Year after year, for 100
years, the earth of Verdun
continues to reveal the
remains of soldiers who fell
in this intense battle.
Little by little these
accidental findings continue
to emerge so as to remind the
living of their suffering.
The dead still standing ! It was indeed in this manner
that during earthwork
conducted at the site
of the Memorial renovation
project workers unearthed
3 skeletons, found more
than 6 feet underground.
And two years ago, not far
from there, German tourists
noticed human bones, clearly
exposed just on the surface
of a path. Thus were
discovered the remains of
26 « poilus » - combatants
– who it is thought had
probably sought shelter
in the basement of a house,
which had perhaps been used
as an infirmary, and were
ultimately buried under the
bombardment. Thanks to their
dog tags, seven of them were
identified. Their descendants
were notified, and the remains
of one of the soldiers were
transferred to Corsica to be
buried amongst family.
Verdun, Visions of History
Inanimate witnesses, other
found objects transmit
history and provide moving
reminders of the past and
IV
Patronage :
From the national
fundraising campaign
of yesteryear to
crowdfunding
today
At its creation in 1963
the Verdun Memorial did
not benefit from any form
of public funding. Today,
public funds are the
principle source of funding
for the renovation project
and as such represent 83%
of the total budget of 12
million Euros, with the CNSV
(National Committee for the
Memory of Verdun) responsible
for 9%, 1 million Euros.
the conditions of life of the
soldiers. Numerous detailed
contemporary writings
describing the conflict exist,
yet few are devoted to these
objects of everyday life,
utilitarian or not, and the
excavation of 2013 revealed
diverse findings including
2 wristwatches, stopped,
at several minutes interval,
respectively at 11:07
and 11:14. Only two months
ago, pencils, eyeglasses,
blankets, ammunition and
shoes, and even a flask of
the medicinal peppermint soft
drink Ricqlès, half-full,
were found intact, a century
later.
Help support
the memorial
In addition to traditional
fundraising, a crowdfunding
campaign is in the planning
stages. Both corporate
and individual donors in
the United States are
entitled to benefit from
tax deductions to the full
extent of the law through
donations made to the Friends
of Fondation de France.
(fdnweb.org)
Additional donations are now
sought to finance
• Modernization of the
museography
• Enrichment of the existing
collection through
acquisitions
• Realization of thematic
exhibits
• Participation in the
economic development of
the region
For further information
regarding the project
please contact :
Serge Kirszbaum Consultant
Serge Kirszbaum
Président
77, rue du Cardinal Lemoine
75005 Paris, France
t (33)1 46 33 05 62
t (33)6 74 94 05 62
m [email protected]
Linda Kaufman
Senior Consultant
t USA
929 330 2689
t mobile paris
(33)6 77 70 03 93
[email protected]
Verdun Memorial
1, avenue du Corps Européen
55100 Fleury-devant-Douaumont
www.memorialdeverdun.fr
https://www.facebook.com/
memorial.deverdun/info
t (33)3 29 84 35 34
f (33)3 29 84 45 54
Francis Lefort
President
Thierry Hubscher
Director
Memorial Patrons
Photo credits
© Jean-marie Mangeot