The best walks and hikes around Épinonville

In his address on Remembrance Day in 2015, then-President Joachim Gauck expressed some thoughts that I would like to offer visitors to this war cemetery/military cemetery for reflection: "This... is our shared hope: that the memory of the suffering of war will not breed revenge, but will lead more and more people and nations to seek a way out in peaceful coexistence. Just as European integration succeeded in becoming the great peace project of our continent. (...) That military cemeteries, as Albert Schweitzer once said, may finally become the great preachers of peace. Then, as we have experienced, reconciliation over the graves will be possible. Then peace can be lasting. We all share this responsibility."

Follow the marking tapes if no signpost is visible.

Sturdy footwear

This hill in the Argonne was the scene of fierce mine warfare between French and German forces during WWI. From 1915 to 1918, both sides dug extensive tunnel networks under the hill, causing hundreds of explosions and thousands of deaths. Today, impressive craters, trenches and underground passages can be seen – a poignant reminder of life and fighting underground.

This serene cemetery contains 1,111 individual graves of German soldiers who died in the Argonne Forest during the First World War. Created in November 1915, it is the only German cemetery in the region that has been largely preserved in its original state. Of particular note is the gravestone of Commander Baron von Müllenheim-Rechberg, who died in 1916, and the monument to the 27th Landwehr Regiment. Since 2023, the site has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage as part of the World War I Memorial Sites.

https://verdun1916.eu/?p=7570 The hill of Vauquois (Butte de Vauquois), about 25 kilometers northwest of Verdun, is 295 meters high and was, due to its location, an excellent vantage point for those who wanted to defend the northern Argonne, together with the hill of Les Eparges, which is about the same distance southeast of Verdun. The Germans had already captured the village of Vauquois and the hill without a fight in September 1914. The village and the hill were immediately fortified. Caves and underground passages were cut and dug in the limestone soil. The total length of the passages was no less than 15 km. With loopholes one could cover a large area, and one could count on artillery support from Cheppy and Montfaucon. It was an excellently built defense line. The French were keen to recapture this hill, partly because Verdun was threatened by it. First Battles for Vauquois The French attacked on 28 October 1914 without artillery support, and ran straight into a barrage of bullets and shells. Within an hour the attackers were out of action. The next day there was another attack, but this time with artillery support. It was another failure on this well-defended position. Until the end of February, attacks were made repeatedly on the village and the hill, with or without artillery support. The losses were enormous, especially on the French side.

This small German cemetery is in stark contrast to the American one a little further on. The German Military Cemetery in Romagne-sous-Montfaucon, also known as Deutscher Soldatenfriedhof Romagne-sous-Montfaucon and Romagne-sous-Montfaucon Cimetière Militaire Allemand, was established in 1914 at the start of the First World War, but saw its heaviest use during the Battle of Verdun in 1916. The cemetery is located 220 meters north of the village center along the road to Bantheville. It contains 1,407 German and eight French soldiers who fell during the First World War in northwestern France.

During the First World War a 'mine war' literally pulverized the hill: the mine craters on the Butte de Vauquois. A monument marks the site of the old destroyed village.