The Village of Vauquois - an example of World War I Fighting

After we shifted our base from Reims to Sainte Menehould, checked into our hotel, and had a bit of lunch, we headed off for a preliminary look at the area where Anna's grandfather fought.  The beginning of his Regiment's attack on German positions occurred adjacent to the Butte de Vauquois.

We parked in a small lot in the 'new' village of Vauquois and followed a trail up the butte.  Even after 100 years and reforestation, trenches, craters, and tunnels are visible everywhere.  At the top of hill is a memorial to the original village along with massive mine craters.

Barbed wire still in place around opening to a dugout

Opening to another dugout on Vauquois Butte

Parking lot with 'new' village to left out of picture and memorial in center 

Vauquois Butte from Memorial

In 1914, Vauquois was a small village of 168 inhabitants at the top of the Butte de Vauquois that found itself caught up and destroyed in all the horrors of war along the western front.  At one point, the village was occupied by the Germans who shot both the Mayor and his 8-year old son along with other civilians.  The French re-took the village, and the front line shifted so that the French held the top of the butte or small hill, and the Germans the other side.

The village of Vauquois was destroyed in February 1915 following harsh battles that radically transformed its landscape. Up until 1917, French and German forces dug miles of underground tunnels in order to inflict the greatest possible damage on the enemy’s network using tons of explosives.

Top of Vauquois Butte with photo of old village in front of cratered original location

Explanation of crater formed by German mine in 1916

 

Vauquois Memorial at top of Butte with mine craters in foreground

After the war, the village was rebuilt at the foot of the butte.

Today, visitors are able to see for themselves the changed face of Vauquois Butte overlooking the formidable craters caused by the detonation of mines, along with examples of restored trenches from both the French and German sides. A tour guide is on hand in the local association’s exhibition space and at the visitor reception point in the village, charging €5 for a tour of the area above ground.

Guided tours of the underground “living quarters” are by prior appointment only, in return for a small charge in aid of the association. The number of tours is limited in the interests of safety and site preservation.  Because of time constraints and the fact our main purpose was to retrace the movements of Anna's grandfather, we did not take any guided tours.  We spent the afternoon looking around Vauquois Butte and finding areas in the vicinity where the 364th Infantry Regiment had been and fought.  See Post "Into Action with the 364th Infantry Regiment of the 91st Division".