Heartache and beauty on the battlefields of northern France
In summer 2018, I explored some of the key sites involved in World War I and the newer memorials and museums, including the newly renovated Musée de l’Armistice. It was a heart-wrenching trip, but it gave me a much deeper understanding of the losses and sacrifices, as well as the history of how the war […]
See where the 1918 Armistice was signed
This article was published in The i Standing outside France’s Musée de l’Armistice, I’m surprised to find so few people visiting the spot where the First World War officially came to an end. Here in the middle of Picardy’s dense Compiègne forest, rain drips from the giant oaks and browning beeches. An avenue up to […]
Compiegne: World War I history
When visitors go in search of World War I history, their travels usually take them to Flanders or the battlefields of the Somme. But in Picardy, the town of Compiegne, has its own story to tell. It was here that both the Armistices were signed – in World War I it was Germany that was […]