- 08 -022018
« 1918, armistice(s) », episode 2
Clemenceau holds firmly the arm of a woman wearing the Phrygian cap, allegory of France to move away from Paris bombed by enemy planes © Paris, musée Clemenceau. The Prince Sixte Bourbon-Parma in Belgian uniform and […]
- 07 -312018
« 1918, armistice(s) », episode 1
Speech by Bethmann Hollweg to the Reichstag (German Parliament) before the deputies on 12 December 1916, during which he proposed, on behalf of the Central Empires (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman, Bulgaria), the start of peace negotiations. […]
- 07 -262018
« 1918, armistice(s) », introduction
Poster for the Libération loan, by Abel Faivre. This loan was ratified on 19 September 1918 and the subscription was taken out before and after the 11 November Armistice, from 20 October to 24 November […]
- 05 -272016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty-eighth episode : Verdun and franco-german reconciliation
The picture of French President François Mitterrand and Federal German Chancellor Helmut Kohl standing hand-in-hand in front of the Ossuary of Douaumont on September 1984 became a strong symbol of the Franco-German Reconciliation. Chancellor Helmut […]
- 05 -242016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty-seventh episode : the Verdun memorial
The Verdun Memorial emerged from a common vision of the veterans of Verdun who wished to build a «Temple of Remembrance» on the battlefield. The inscription for the Memorial’s entrance is from French writer and […]
- 05 -202016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty-sixth episode : the Douaumont ossuary
The Douaumont Ossuary is one of the most powerful war memorials in France. The Ossuary was built on the initiative of one man: Marie André Charles Ginisty, Bishop of Verdun. Monseigneur Ginisty requested that a […]
- 05 -172016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty-fifth episode : the myth of the “saviour of Verdun”
On 25 February 1916, General Philippe Pétain, attached to French General Staff as Commander of the Second Army, was ordered to save Verdun at all costs. After replacing him by General Robert Nivelle, General Joseph […]
- 05 -102016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty third episode : the emblematic battle of Verdun
At the start of the battle, French troops put up a bitter resistance against Germany’s incredible will to triumph. At the same time, contemporaries sensed that this battle was bound to determine the course of […]
- 05 -062016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty second episode : the destroyed villages of Verdun
In 1914, the rural area that was to become the geographical area of the Battle of Verdun had many small villages of 100 inhabitants each. All the residents of these villages were evacuated before the […]
- 05 -032016
The “hyperbataille” of Verdun, twenty first episode : the martyred city of Verdun
The first large-calibre projectiles that were fired on the city of Verdun on 21 February 1916, the first day of the Battle, caused untold damages. Two days later, all the remaining civilians were evacuated from […]
New comments