Monument aux enfants de Verdun morts pour la France - Verdun - France - World War I Memorials and Monuments on Waymarking.com

[FR]

"Construit en 1928, le Monument aux Morts et aux Enfants de Verdun s'appuie sur la demi-lune de la Chaussée, dont la construction fut ordonnée par le Maréchal de Vauban au 17ème siècle. Il s'élève en lieu et place de la boucherie militaire détruite en 1916. Ce monument aux morts représente les cinq corps de l’armée française engagés pendant la bataille de 1916.

Massives et géantes, les cinq statues rendent hommage à quelques figures familières de la Grande Guerre. De gauche à droite, le cuirassier avec son sabre, son casque caractéristique et sa pèlerine, image d'une armée des siècles passés d'où le cheval est en train de disparaître; puis, le territorial emmitouflé dans sa toile de tente pour se protéger des intempéries, prêt à toutes les tâches ingrates comme jeter des pelletées de cailloux sous les roues des camions de la Voie sacrée ou creuser des tranchées; au centre, jeune, déterminé, poings serrés, le fantassin aux cartouchières bien garnies, dans son uniforme de 1916, héros de tous les champs de bataille et vainqueur de Verdun; ensuite, avec ses airs de vieux grognard moustachu, le colonial à la vareuse aux pans relevés et, contre les rigueurs de l'hiver meusien, une écharpe autour du cou, sans doute tirée d'un colis familial; enfin, l'artilleur équipé de ses indispensables jumelles pour le pointage du canon, seigneur de la guerre moderne de plus en plus technique et industrielle."

[EN]

"Built in 1928, the Monument to the Dead and Children of Verdun is based on the half-moon of the Chaussée, the construction of which was ordered by Marshal de Vauban in the 17th century. It stands in place of the military butchery destroyed in 1916. This monument to the dead represents the five bodies of the French army engaged in the battle of 1916.

Massive and giant, the five statues pay tribute to some familiar figures of the Great War. From left to right, the cuirassier with his sabre, his characteristic helmet and his pilgrim's coat, the image of an army of past centuries from which the horse is disappearing; then, the territorial soldier wrapped in his tent to protect himself from the elements, ready for all the thankless tasks such as throwing shovelfuls of stones under the wheels of the trucks on the Sacred Way or digging trenches; In the centre, young, determined, fists clenched, the infantryman with his well-stocked cartridge belts, in his 1916 uniform, hero of all the battlefields and winner of Verdun; Then, with his airs of old mustachioed grognard, the colonial with the jacket with the raised flaps and, against the rigours of the Meuse winter, a scarf around the neck, undoubtedly taken from a family parcel; finally, the artilleryman equipped with his indispensable binoculars for the pointing of the gun, lord of the modern war more and more technical and industrial."

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Date the Monument or Memorial was built or dedicated: 11/01/1928 Private or Public Monument?: Government Name of the Private Organization or Government Entity that built this Monument: Town of Verdun Geographic Region where the Monument is located: Europe Website for this Monument: [Web Link] Physical Address of Monument: Avenue du Général Mangin Verdun, France 55100 Rate this waymark: Photo or photos will be uploaded.: yes

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Date Logged Log User Rating   06/13/2023 Georgioturino visited it