59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Share Posted 20 November , 2008 Well,we got out & about on the weekend/days following the 11th Nov.this year despite all the rules,blocks & regs. foisted upon us by the Sarko lot. Here's what we saw; Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 St,Mihiel.Wet,windy & wonderful; Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 Misty wet day.The cloud was lower than some of the hills.I'll explain later. War budgie.I liked him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 As I(I said we for some reason)entered,I could hear these flags flapping in the gale from the gate,over 200 meters away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 Doorway to the chapel.Huge,bronze plated doors with the best ever doorknobs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 20 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 20 November , 2008 More tomorrow & the Patton story of Montsec. Tired now,need to play the old geetar a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Airman,Flu or crash or dow,I couldn't tell you. After this,I stopped off at the wardens info office.Nice chap,Bob.Some of you may remember him from the Somme American cemetery.He was preparing for heli's & General's & stuff but we had a good chat for over half an hour.He was quite a bit biased against the Brit Army & it's leaders & there was no swaying him out of his thinking . Never mind. Funny how this date keeps cropping up in my life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 & now,on Bob's recommendation,off to Montsec. See what I mean about the low cloud.It wasn't mist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 You get a fantastic view from up here.Dunno which river it is but it must have been a beggar to take this spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 The purpose of the title. It was a Col.Patton who's troops took this hill during the great war & it was a Gen.Patton who took it again in 1944! He must have been sick of the sight of the place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Outstanding day.Even if I got soaked,it was worth it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 & then back down town. You can easily do a then & now thing from these riverfront photo's. Not a bad town,ol'Verdun Thats the large memorial on the right here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 On the 11th,I was busy dodging Gendarmes & soldiers on my never ending quest to see fort Moulainville. The 11th wasn't the best morning to be out in the woods.Cops everywhere but the accent,plus the French car(instead of my Brit one)kept me out of trouble with the Presidents men. Giving up on Moulainville,I tried to find Tavannes but ended up here.I should have followed the rail track but it was very wet & a long hike. Was I anywhere close?Anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 THis house had been fortified by concrete & the underfloor space made into several storage or living rooms.The chimney was false. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 & then a halt to the road trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 & then back to the in laws at Watronville.It was early so I went up the hill to see if I could find anything GW. I'd been told that nothing occured here but,local friends had said that yes,there was some GW history attached to here.They were right. Hard to see with the leaves everywhere but,thes are trenches,there is a lot of arty damage. At 1st I thought these were just masonary holes,where locals had dug for rocks to build with but,no way.there is quite a system up here. Shame I cant find any literature on this subject. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59165 Posted 21 November , 2008 Author Share Posted 21 November , 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete1052 Posted 22 November , 2008 Share Posted 22 November , 2008 Note that in Dave's third photo the majority of burials of American Great War dead in Europe are in the Meuse-Argonne Cemetery. The U.S. offensive in the Meuse-Argonne was in progress right up until 11 AM on the 11th of November 1918. In the recent BBC documentary on the last day of the war it was pointed out that the majority of casualties on the last day were American. In a forum thread about the documentary some people said they thought Pershing and his generals were criminally negligent to allow attacks to continue until the last moment of the war. The Meuse-Argonne offensive was one of the reasons the Germans asked for the armistice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christina Holstein Posted 22 November , 2008 Share Posted 22 November , 2008 Great pictures and nice to see something American. Rain in the morning at Verdun but sunny in the afternoon. I had a BBC team in Fort Douaumont at 4.15pm. When we came out, the moon was rising on one side of the fort while the sun was setting in a pink sky on the other. Wonderful. They were very impressed. Christina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trenchtrotter Posted 22 November , 2008 Share Posted 22 November , 2008 Great atmospheric photos. Its been a lomg time since I was on this part of the old western front. Must revisit. I sem to remember the Tranche de Soif (Apremont) was near St Mihiel somewhere and I would recommend a visit there if you find yourself in that part of the world. Regards TT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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