French Battlefields

26/02/2022

How many of you who have visited The Somme battlefields have seen this scene of destruction? Not many? I can't blame you if you haven't. This was a convent in Abbeville. It was destroyed by German bombing in May, 1940. This is how it is today; a reminder that The Somme isn't just about the terrible battles of July to Novembr, 1916. In my 31 years working as a battlefield guide here on The Somme, I've come to love this region. this is the real France. Michael Smith. Licensed guide.

26/02/2022

30/09/2020

Almost 20,000 Russian troops fighting on French soil. Where? When? In December of 1915 the French government asked for Russian help in fighting the Germans on the Western Front. 4 new Russian regiments were formed, and the first of these, composed mainly of conscripts from the Moscow region, were transported by train to the Pacific port of Dalian, then by French naval vessels to Marseilles, via the Suez Canal. The voyage lasted two months. Then by train to the Mailly army camp in the Champagne region. This is still a military camp today. The 3rd infantry regiment left the northern Russian port of Archangelesk in August, 1916 for France. Initially the Russians, equipped and armed by the French army, were fighting in the Reims/Champagne region, allowing the French army to concentrate on the battles raging further east at Verdun. More on this later. This sector is well worth a visit, and what better place to start than the tiny Russian monastery (still functioning) at Saint-Hilaire. Next to it is the Russian orthodox church and Russian cemetery. There is a tiny hamlet, just down the road from here, named Moscou (Moscow).
Michael Smith
[email protected]

26/09/2020

03/09/2020

Cappy is a village on the River Somme, at the heart of the Battles of the Somme of 1916. The age of steam was at its zenith; the petrol, gasoline or internal combustion engine was still in its infancy. Anything heavy was moved by steam power. In my previous post I wrote about the Franco-Prussian war of 1870/71, in which France had lost its eastern region of Alsace and parts of Lorraine, and was, from the 1880’s onwards, gearing up for another war with what was, from 1871, Germany. Many narrow gauge military railways were built on the new Franco-German frontier. This experience was put to good use in WW1, especially on The Somme, where lines were constructed to bring men and supplies to the front. The line from Froissy to Dampière could transport some 1500 tons as day. The line runs, in part alongside the River Somme, and goods could be loaded or unloaded to or from barges at Cappy. After the war it was used, until 1924, for transporting materials for the reconstruction of the roads. Most of the military railways were then dismantled, but this line survived because it served a sugar beet mill at Dompière. This came to an end in the 1970’s, and the line was bought by volunteers, and is now the tourist railway “Le Petit train de la Haute Somme,” “The little train of the Upper Somme. “
Cappy had, in 1918, a German airfield, and it was from here that the Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen took off for his last, fatal sortie. More on this in a later post.
Michael Smith, licensed guide. [email protected]

30/08/2020

The Franco-Prussian war of 1870/1871 isn’t really well known, except perhaps to military warfare buffs. It was a catastrophe for France, defeated in less than six months, and losing large swathes of territory. In 1870 there was no such country as Germany. What was to become Germany was a collection of independent and semi-independent states, the most powerful of which was Prussia (not Russia!!). The Prussian prime minister, Count Otto von Bismarck, planned to unify the Germanic states into a new German Empire. This alarmed France as it already had a powerful industrial rival to the north, the United Kingdom, and didn’t want another to the East. From Bismarck’s perspective, the annexation of the Germanic regions of Alsace and parts of Lorraine, by Louis XIV, in the 17th century, were illegal, and resulted in the subjugation of the Germanic heritage of those regions. The spark to the conflict was the abdication of Queen Isabella II of Spain. The crown was offered to Prince Leopold of Hohenzollen. His claim was supported by Prussia. The French were totally opposed to this, not wanting to be surrounded by Germanic states.
War was declared in July,1870, and the first action was on 2nd August, 1870, not in France, but by an attack on Saarbrücken by the French 23rd Infantry Regiment. The resulting French victory was short lived. The Prussians lost 83 men killed or injured, and the French 86.
More about subsequent battles in future posts.

10/07/2020

Blitzkrieg (Lightning war). The war damage can still be seen today, 80 years later. The declaration of war on Germany ,by France and the United Kingdom, didn’t immediately result in large scale military action, but rather a building up of military resources. This came to an abrupt end in May of 1940, with the bombing, by the Luftwaffe, of nothern French towns and cities. Abbeville, a small town of 25,000 inhabitants, was particularly hard hit. On 20th May, 1940 almost 5,000 explosive and incendary bombs were unleashed by waves of Heinkel HE III and Junkers JU 87 bombers, destroying much of this medieval town. 80 years on there still remain the gutted buildings, as in the photograph of this 17th century convent. Much more detail on my website : www.somme-battle-guide.com. Post by Michael Smith, 18/06/2020.

08/07/2020

Bailey Bridges were a product of WW2, essential to replacing bridges were destroyed by retreating armies to prevent enemy forces pursuing them. This was true at Pont-Rémy in northern France. On 2nd September, 1944, the liberating Canadian 12th Manitoba Dragoons were threatening to cross the River Somme. The retreating Germans destroyed the bridges in order the hamper the Canadians. The Canadian engineers quickly erected “temporary” Bailey Bridges, two of which are still in use 76 years later, although, today, carrying on pedestrian and cycle traffic. The photo is of one of these bridges as it is today.
The 12th Manitoba Dragoons was a reconnaissance unit using armoured cars. Having landed in Normandy on 8th & 9th July, the unit performed valuable service in the battle for Falaise Gap, later chasing the retreating Germans though northern France, and on to the remainder of North-West Europe.
The Royal Canadian Engineers, formed in 1903, were, and still are an essential part of the armed forces, often involved in dangerous situations, especially demining minefields, a task that is still ongoing today. Water supplies, bridging, defense works are all part of the engineers’ role. More on this in a later article.

Bailey Bridges were the brainchild of Donald Bailey, later Sir Donald Bailey, employed by the British War Office. The success of the bridge lies in its modular design, and its ability to be able to be constructed without heavy lifting equipment. Even the heaviest part could be carried by six men. It was developed by the UK Experimental Bridging Establishment, a branch of M.E.X.E, the Military Engineering Experimental Establishment. I remember, back in the 1960’s seeing sections of the bridge lying around at their unit in Christchurch, Dorset. At that time Christchurch was in Hampshire. The first prototype was tested at nearby Stanpit Marshes in 1941. This bridge still stands there today, and in use as a footbridge. The first Bailey bridge constructed in a war zone was during the North Africa campaign in 1942. Bailey bridges are still being constructed and used throughout the world, often in civilian applications.

31/01/2016

Paris has many reminders of the German occupation of 1940-1944. The hôtel Meurice, on the rue de Rivoli, was the HQ of the German Occupation Forces. The Hôtel Ritz (image), just around the corner, was the HQ of the German Air Force, the Luftwaffe, and the notorious Gestapo HQ was at 11 rue Saussaies, in the 8th arrondissement. Of course, there are also the monuments to the deportées, and the Shoah or holocaust Memorial. The latter, for me, is the most important.
Hi**er ordered the destruction of Paris, when the allies were approaching, but the German commander, General von Cholitz, to his credit, refused.
As I mentioned at the beginning of the month these posts were for the month of January, and this is, therefore the last one. If there is enough demand I might continue at a later stage. Anyway thank you for sharing them, and as we say in France, A bientôt. Michael Smith, Licensed guide.

30/01/2016

When we think about conflicts, our first thoughts are often about the combat itself, and maybe,secondly, about the engineers, the medics, the logistics, and all the other support that is esential for an armed operation.
This little story concerns the American 101st airborne. Fighting was very heavy in drop zone D, inland from Utah Beach, Normandy. The village of Angoville-au-Plaine changed hands several times. The heros of the aftermath were two nurses, Robert E. Wright and Kenneth J. Moore. They treated the injured from both sides in the village church, and saved the lives of some 80+ wounded. There were civilian casualties, and all the members of one family, the Langeards, were wiped out, except for thirteen year old Paul. He was treated at the church. The church pews are, to this day, stained with blood. Some 4000 visitors a year visit this small village church.

29/01/2016

In the little Normandy village of La Roche-Guyon are two castles. On top of the hill is the impressive ruin of a 12th century fortified castle, and below it a sumptious chateau, dating mostly, as we see it today, from the 18th century. The German commander in Normandy, Field Marshall Irwin Rommel, made the chateau his headquarters. On 17th July, 1944 Rommel had been inspecting the command post of the 1st SS Panzer Corps, near Caen, and was returning to the chateau in his Kübelwagen, the German equivalent of the land rover or jeep, when it was strafed by a Spitfire. The vehicle careered into a ditch. The driver died of his injuries, but Rommel survived, although sustaining head injuries. It was, effectively, the end of his career. He was, of course, later accused of plotting to kill Hi**er, and was forced to commit su***de. There is some controversy as to shot up Rommel's vehicle. A Canadian, Charley Fox, and a South African, Chris Le Roux both have been credited with the attack.

28/01/2016

Some of the most impressive remains on the D-Day Beaches are to be found at Longue-sur-Mer. The four German casements, with surviving 152mm naval guns are much as they were left on D-Day, 1944. The guns posed a threat to ships, and could hit targets on Utah Beach. The site was constructed by the German Todt Organisation, and origninally operated by the German Navy, Kreigsmarine, but later control was transfered to the German army, the Wehrmacht. Fortunately for the allies these guns had a slightly shorter range than the allied cruisers and battleship atttacking them, so the warships only had to stay just out of range. The gun positions were initially attacked by from the air, but bombs had little impact. It was the shells coming in hoizontally from the American battleship U.S.S. Arkansas, the Free French cruisers Georges Leygues and Montcalm, and the British cruisers Ajax and Argonaut that did the damage. However, this was not enough to completely silence the guns, and this task fell to the British infantry Devonshire Regiment. Visits to the guns are free, and make wornderful photo ops.

27/01/2016

For the last four days of these posts, I want to come up to World War Two. If you travel from the World War One sites in Picardy to World War One sites in Normandy, its nice to travel along the coast, through the seaside resorts of Trouville and Deauville. In Trouville, in the gents toilets in a café, is this notice "Messieurs, approchez-vous au urinoir, car votre meilleur ami n'est pas, peu-être, aussi long que vous pensiez." and translated as "Gentlemen, please come closer to the urinal as your best friend isn't, perhaps, as long as you think it is." I sincerely hope that no-one is offended by this. Back to serious stuff tomorrow after this light break from war.

26/01/2016

We hear so much about World War starting in The Balkans, with the assassination of Crown Prince Franz-Ferdinand of Austria. So how did France and The United Kingdom become involved? France was involved a war with Prussia in 1870-1871. It was obvious that the Germanic states such as Prussia, Bavaria, and other smaller states were heading to a unification which would produce a powerful industrial state on the eastern border of France. This had to be stopped, and France declared war on Prussia. The French army was personally led by the French emperor Napoleon III, nephew of Napleon Bonaparte. It was a complete disaster for the French, and the French emperor was captured. Paris was surrounded, and the interior minister, Leon Gambetta escaped in a hot air baloon.The German Empire was proclaimed at the Palace of Versailles, near Paris. The French were obliged to cede Alsace and part of Lorraine to Germany at the Treaty of Frankfurt. From that time onwards France built up a huge army intent in winning back that territory. The chance came in 1914. There were bloody battles in Lorraine, at Verdun. The Germans, hoping for a quick virtory attacked france by the "back door," through Belgiium. As The United Kingdom was bound by a treaty to defend Belgium from foreign invastion, The United Kingdom declared war on Germany, hence the UK's participation.

25/01/2016

Less than an hour's drive from Crécy is the battlefield of Agincourt (Azincourt in French). This too was part of the 100 Years War, fought on 25th october, 1415. The conditions were very much like the Somme Battlefieds in 1916. It was fought in knee-deep mud. The French knights were pulled down by their heavy armour. The Welsh and English archers were protected by pointed stakes, set into the ground. The English King Henry V, was laying claim to the French throne, as did Edward III some 80 years earlier at Crécy. The fighting degenerated into hand to hand combat with clubs, hammers and axes. As at Crécy, the English army was outnumbered by about 5 to 1, but had made the most of the dreadful underfoot condtions. In 1420 Henry was regognised as the rightful heir to the French throne, but his victory was short lived as he died of dysentry in 1422, at the age of 35.
There is a very good museum of medieval warfare at Agincourt.

24/01/2016

Crécy is another Somme battlefield, but dating from the 14th century. It was the first battle in the 100 years war, which did, indeed, last for more than 100 years. The reasons for the battle are complex, and had their roots some 300 years earlier. The detail would occupy many pages, if not chapters. So here's the potted Reader's Digest version. William, Duke of Normandy, conquered England in 1066. From that time, for the next 300 years the English kings and nobility spoke French, and the English kings married French princesses. With the marriage came a dowry of land, and by the 14th century England controlled more French territory than the French king. Also the English king, Edward III, had a plausible claim to the French throne.
So the English army of around 16,000 landed in Normandy, and made their way east to Picardy. The French were camped on the East bank of the River Somme, near Abbeville, and controlled all the bridges, so felt that the English could not cross. How wrong they were. One of the English army had been in the region previously, and knew that it was possible to ford the river, near its mouth,at low tide. So the two armies met at nearby Crécy. The Welsh archers, equipped with longbows, made of yew wood and h**p, completetly outclassed the Genonese crossbowmen, attached to the French army of 80,000. The crossbow was powerful, but slow, needing time to be reloaded. Complete victory for the English, with mighty help from the Welsh archers. A day to remember, 26th August, 1346. There is a viewing point (photo) overlooking the battlefield, and a small museum in the village of Crécy.