"The total number of military and civilian casualties in World War I was over 37 million. There were over 16 million deaths and 20 million wounded ranking it among the deadliest conflicts in human history." (Wikipedia)
Freedom is Never Free
Day 2 - August 6 - Paris to Arras - WWI
Arriving in Paris, our Tour Director with Trafalgar, as well as the Juno Beach Centre Program Manager, greeted us, and we immediately made our way by bus through the country-side to Beaumont-Hamel to visit the Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland Memorial, The Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery.
Beaumont-Hamel
"Beaumont-Hamel symbolizes the service and sacrifice of Newfoundlanders during the First World War. This park pays special tribute to the role of the Newfoundland Regiment in the Battle of the Somme and the heavy losses it suffered. The park also stands as a memorial to those Newfoundlanders who fell in battle and who have no known grave.
The Newfoundland Regiment participated in the great Somme offensive where, on 1 July 1916, strategic and tactical miscalculations led to a terrible slaughter. Despite its horrific casualties, the Regiment fought until 1918. For its valour, it won the right to add "Royal" to its name, the only such honor bestowed during the Great War.
Once a battlefield, Beaumont-Hamel became, in 1922, a memorial park conceived by Padre Thomas Nangle and planned by Rudolphe H.K Cochius. Its design evokes the Newfoundland environment: overlooking the battlefield stands a bronze caribou resting on a granite base surrounded by plants native to the island. Three bronze tablets bare the names of the Newfoundlanders buried elsewhere. This memorial park honours those soldiers and ensures that their sacrifice will never be forgotten." (Historic Sites and Monument Board of Canada)
"Tread softly here! Go reverently and slow!
Yea, let your soul go down upon its knees,
And with bowed head, and heart abased, strive hard
To grasp the future gain in this sore loss!
For not one foot of this dank sod but drank
its surfeit of the blood of gallant men.
Who, for their faith, their hope, - for Life and Liberty.
Here made the sacrifice, - here gave their lives.
And gave right willingly - for you and me.
From this vast altar - pile the souls of men.
Sped up to God in countless multitudes;
On this grim cratered ridge they gave their all,
And, giving, won
The Peace of Heaven and Immortatily.
Our hearts go out to them in boundless gratitude;
If ours - the God's; for His vast charity
All sees, all knows, all comprehends - save bounds.
He has repaid their sacrifice; - and we ----- ?
God help us if we fail to pay our debt
In fullest full and all unstintingly!
John Oxenham
Yea, let your soul go down upon its knees,
And with bowed head, and heart abased, strive hard
To grasp the future gain in this sore loss!
For not one foot of this dank sod but drank
its surfeit of the blood of gallant men.
Who, for their faith, their hope, - for Life and Liberty.
Here made the sacrifice, - here gave their lives.
And gave right willingly - for you and me.
From this vast altar - pile the souls of men.
Sped up to God in countless multitudes;
On this grim cratered ridge they gave their all,
And, giving, won
The Peace of Heaven and Immortatily.
Our hearts go out to them in boundless gratitude;
If ours - the God's; for His vast charity
All sees, all knows, all comprehends - save bounds.
He has repaid their sacrifice; - and we ----- ?
God help us if we fail to pay our debt
In fullest full and all unstintingly!
John Oxenham
The First World War From Above
"The story of the Great War told from a unique new aerial perspective. Featuring two remarkable historical finds, including a piece of archive footage filmed from an airship in summer 1919, capturing the trenches and battlefields in a way that has rarely been seen before. It also features aerial photographs taken by First World War pilots - developed for the first time in over ninety years - that show not only the devastation inflicted during the fighting, but also quirks and human stories visible only from above." (BBC)
"The story of the Great War told from a unique new aerial perspective. Featuring two remarkable historical finds, including a piece of archive footage filmed from an airship in summer 1919, capturing the trenches and battlefields in a way that has rarely been seen before. It also features aerial photographs taken by First World War pilots - developed for the first time in over ninety years - that show not only the devastation inflicted during the fighting, but also quirks and human stories visible only from above." (BBC)
Beneath Hill 60
"Gripping true story war drama about the Australian miners tunneling under the trenches of the Western Front in WW1. Directed by Jeremy Sims, cinematography by Toby Oliver ACS. Cinema release on April 15, 2010." (YouTube)
"Gripping true story war drama about the Australian miners tunneling under the trenches of the Western Front in WW1. Directed by Jeremy Sims, cinematography by Toby Oliver ACS. Cinema release on April 15, 2010." (YouTube)
Thiepval Memorial
The Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery
"The First World War saw fierce fighting along what was known as the Western Front - a battle line extending from the Channel Coast to Switzerland.
The Battle of the Somme was a major offensive launched on 1 July 1916 that met fierce German resistance from strong defensive positions unbroken by a seven day bombardment. With a few exceptions, the attack was a failure and the offensive developed into a series of major battles that ended with the onset of winter and exhaustion of the troops by November 1916.
The Thiepval Memorial commemorates by name some 72,000 men who fell in the Somme sector up to 20 March 1918 and who have no known grave. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and unveiled by the Prince of Wales in 1932. It is the largest of the Commonwealth's memorials, standing on the site of one of the most heavily defended German positions to be attacked on the first day of the battle when Commonwealth casualties - killed, wounded and missing - numbered more than 60,000.
The Thiepval Anglo-French Cemetery, symbolizing the Allied effort in the war, contains the graves of 300 Commonwealth and 300 French soldiers, the majority of whom are unidentified.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is responsible for the maintenance of graves and memorials in some 150 countries which commemorate around 1,700,000 members of the Commonwealth forces who died in the two world wars. The war dead commemorated here and elsewhere include those of several different faiths and of none." (The Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery)
"The First World War saw fierce fighting along what was known as the Western Front - a battle line extending from the Channel Coast to Switzerland.
The Battle of the Somme was a major offensive launched on 1 July 1916 that met fierce German resistance from strong defensive positions unbroken by a seven day bombardment. With a few exceptions, the attack was a failure and the offensive developed into a series of major battles that ended with the onset of winter and exhaustion of the troops by November 1916.
The Thiepval Memorial commemorates by name some 72,000 men who fell in the Somme sector up to 20 March 1918 and who have no known grave. The memorial was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and unveiled by the Prince of Wales in 1932. It is the largest of the Commonwealth's memorials, standing on the site of one of the most heavily defended German positions to be attacked on the first day of the battle when Commonwealth casualties - killed, wounded and missing - numbered more than 60,000.
The Thiepval Anglo-French Cemetery, symbolizing the Allied effort in the war, contains the graves of 300 Commonwealth and 300 French soldiers, the majority of whom are unidentified.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is responsible for the maintenance of graves and memorials in some 150 countries which commemorate around 1,700,000 members of the Commonwealth forces who died in the two world wars. The war dead commemorated here and elsewhere include those of several different faiths and of none." (The Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery)
The Somme From Defeat to Victory
"The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme, German: Sommeschlacht), also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 18 November 1916 in the Somme department, on either side of the river Somme. The battle consisted of an offensive by the British and French armies against the German Army, which, since invading France in August 1914, had occupied large areas of the country. The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of the war; by the time fighting paused in late autumn 1916 the forces involved had suffered more than 1 million casualties, making it one of the bloodiest military operations ever recorded." (BBC)
"The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme, German: Sommeschlacht), also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 18 November 1916 in the Somme department, on either side of the river Somme. The battle consisted of an offensive by the British and French armies against the German Army, which, since invading France in August 1914, had occupied large areas of the country. The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of the war; by the time fighting paused in late autumn 1916 the forces involved had suffered more than 1 million casualties, making it one of the bloodiest military operations ever recorded." (BBC)
War Horse
"DreamWorks Pictures' "War Horse," director Steven Spielberg's epic adventure, is a tale of loyalty, hope and tenacity set against
a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War." (YouTube)
"DreamWorks Pictures' "War Horse," director Steven Spielberg's epic adventure, is a tale of loyalty, hope and tenacity set against
a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War." (YouTube)
Arriving in Arras, we took in a bit of sight-seeing as we walked to the main square; exchanged some liesurely conversation between ourselves and a local; some laughs over the smell and taste of aged cheese; enjoyed a little taste of the town and our first night of this memorable journey together.
