The Visitor Trail

Verdun Memorial Museum. Visitor trail. Ground floor. Photo: Pierre Antoine

In line with the ideas put forward by the founders of the Memorial, the replica of the 1916 battlefield remains the central feature of the visit. It is set within a glass cage and there is a video wall covering an area of 100 sq. metres. A unique audiovisual presentation recreates the violence of the battle and shows the tremors and contortions of ground constantly pounded by shellfire. It combines archival images and artwork by the soldiers. To each side are the humble, fragile everyday objects used by the men, set out in bare wooden display cases, giving visitors a different view of the battle, at eye level.

Further on, the trucks and guns on the mock-up of the Sacred Way are a reminder of the logistics of the gigantic battle, displayed against a background of engine noise and archival images. At the end of this floor, visitors enter an enclosed space beneath the battlefield screens which gives some idea of the claustrophobic surroundings of soldiers crouching in shell holes on the front line of the battle.