School Vist to Verdun

[hirdar01]

Hello all,

I would like to ask members for their advice. I teach history at a school in Leeds and have run WWI battlefields tours to Ypres and the Somme since 1998. Usually I run the visit to all the main sites of the above mentioned areas. Next Year I thought I would do a different visit and take the kids to Verdun and the Somme. I have been to Verdun only once, about five years ago, I thought some of the sites I visited then were well dodgy for the kids, but that is because I spent alot of time off the beaten path, as it were. I feel that a visit to Verdun would be worthwhile for the kids, but two of my dept. have said no, they would not touch Verdun with a barge pole! I would love to hear from anyone who has run a visit to Verdun, what sites they have visited, and any advice on itinerary arrangements they may have.

I said I would consult with a higher authority, and you are it!

Many thanks,

Antony Hird.

[Christina Holstein]

Antony,

I don't run school tours to Verdun but it's a place that is visited by thousands of French and German school parties every year and there's no reason why you can't take kids there. I certainly wouldn't take them off the path but the main sites are quite safe.

You'd need to take them to Fleury Memorial, the Ossuary, one of the major forts, the Trench of Bayonets and perhaps an Ouvrage like Froideterre, although since it's possible to get into Froideterre very easily, you might not want to do that. You shouldn't under any circumstances consider taking them into - or even near - dangerous forts like Souville or Tavannes or even to the entrance of a site like Four Chimneys Shelter, which is wide open and just too tempting.

On the Left Bank, the monument on the Mort Homme has to be seen and you can take school parties safely by arrangement into the Butte de Vauquois tunnels and into the Kaiser Tunnel.

I wouldn't take kids off the path at all in Verdun. I would stick to the main sites and give them lots of information. There's plenty to see and think about without letting them roam.

If you want any addresses, I'll see what I can do.

Christina

[Paul Reed]

Many of the big companies that do school battlefield tours, such as Galloway and NST, do tours to Verdun, so the risk can't be that high if you stick to the main areas.

You might find my website of use in planning your visit:

http://battlefields1418.50megs.com/verdun_battlefields.htm

[Guest AmericanDoughboy]

Antony,

I am sure something they would love would be the La Verdun Citadelle which features a little ride which features movies and a brief history of Verdun and a museum at the end of the ride. I personally thoroughly enjoyed the Citadel and I hope to visit there once again.

Also, a member of the forums once posted this wonderful and very useful website about tourism in Verdun and I hope it will help:

http://www.verdun-tourisme.com/

-Doughboy

P.S. I also strongly suggest to visit the Douaumont Ossuary and watch the film in the underground floor, it is very moving.

[paul guthrie]

I suppose one can still go to top of ossuary and see entire battlefield.

[healdav]

There isn't just Verdun in the area of Verdun.

You have the whole of the St.Mhiel salient down the road:

Les Eparges,

several other places on the ridge,

Bois le Pretre on the other side,

Signal de Xon,

Flirey,

380mm gun site

Camp Maguerre

you name it

[Patrick]

Verdun is certainly worth a visit, and really a must ,

To me it is a separate war in the war

But how much time can you stay dedicate there ?

as traveling time to Verdun consumes your field time

How old are the kids ?

The battlefield is huge and you have many options ,

Like a nr mentioned above

The city – with the citadel + show and the little train running through it.

The forts Douaumont (do not forget the 600 Germans buried in the walls there)

The fort Vaux (the pigeon plaque)

The Ossuaire of Douaumont and the climb on the tower for a battlefield overview

The museum Memorial de Verdun and the moon land landscape around it

The Villages detruits (ruined villages) visit one of the many, Fleury-Ornes for example

There are 12 well marked colored walks (long-short) to select from plans available in a booklet(guide du muse de plain air , guess also available in English)

10 euro at the Ossuary , they are safe ,

these explain the supply - attack routes with remains of casemates blockhouses etc .

The areas besides the marked tracks and walks are mostly impenetrable due to scrub,

And as on any battlefield , caution should be taken to eventual dangerous war debris ,

However I would strongly doubt you would find any , it’s well cleaned . ( on the walks I mean)

Hope you succeed convincing your colleagues,

Guess a lot of preparation work also is involved .

Good luck

Patrick

Verdun

see also the links of this web page

Here a picture of my last visit exploring the north – east entrance

of fort Vaux (where the Germans entered) you see the ditch of the fort .

The entrance is blocked and the trenches in front of it are impenetrable.

Patrick

[paul guthrie]

There are forts on left bank not much damaged by fire, you can see what they looked like, with Douamount, Vaux you can't. These are Marre & Regret, entry forbidden.

[hirdar01]

A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE RESPONDED FOR YOUR TIME AND KNOWLEDGE. It is really appreciated. I am going to go to Verdun during the October half term to do a formal risk assesment. I have just got back from Belgium, as I went over to do a risk assessment for the Atlantic Wall at Raversijde. (which was fun)

Patrick, thanks for your help. The kids I take are from 15 to 18 and I have one to two days to spend in Verdun. Ideally; I would like to spend two days on the Somme, but his year is different as I have an unusually large 6th form coming back to me in Sept. They have nearly all been on the WWI tour before, so I thought it would be good for them to see something different as most want to go over again next Easter.

Thanks again to all of you for your help.

Once I have got the start of term over with, I will draw up an itinerary. Any further tips of the trade anyone may have, would be appreciated.

Cheers

Antony