HWK - new visitor centre

[CROONAERT]

Earlier this month, I was lucky enough to be able to make a visit to the newly opened visitor centre/'Historial on the Hartmannswillerkopf that was opened on 3rd August this year. Well worth a visit, it doesn't (quite) seem to be fully established yet (it had only been open for a couple of days when I visited), but it's certainly an informative beginning to any visit to the actual battlefield which goes a long way into explaining the -sometimes confusing -events that took place there, especially in 1915. There're some really interesting information panels on a variety of Great War subjects as well as details of the events on the HWK (such as hospitals, 'Hansi', shot at dawns, brothers from opposite sides, the Franco-German 'thing' about Alsace, etc etc) and a few (but not many) bits of hardware and physical items to see and get up close to. I believe that these displays are to be supplemented by varying exhibitions as time moves on. However, for me personally, the highlight is a superb animated model of the mountain with projected images detailing the actions. This is most informative and simplifies matters to the uninitiated quite well. 

 

A café, toilet facilities and a small shop (selling the expected 'tat' (Adrian helmet and bullet keyrings, resin model soldiers, souvenir mugs etc) alongside a decent array of books (with some excellent volumes for those who can read French and/or German... I bought a particularly interesting volume detailing the units and events on the HWK in an almost 'day by day' format from 1916 through to the end of the war (a particularly difficult bit of information to obtain at times without perusing a large number of sources)) and local produce) are also available now. I can certainly recommend a visit (at least once) to anyone who happens to be in the area.

 

 

Dave

Edited 24 August , 2017 by CROONAERT