Douaumont Ossuary, on the site of the Battle of Verdun
The Douaumont Ossuary and Necropolis are a single complex located in the commune of Fleury-devant-Douaumont.
It was conceived at the initiative of Bishop Ginisty of Verdun, who wished to offer a dignified burial to the soldiers who fell during the Battle of Verdun, which claimed the lives of approximately 300,000 French and Germans.Tragically, the bodies of 160,000 men, including 60,000 French soldiers, were never recovered.
The Douaumont Ossuary is a national military necropolis, housing the graves of 16,142 identified French soldiers, as well as an ossuary.
This ossuary was designed as a long gallery, topped by the Lanterne des Morts – Lantern of the Dead. It contains the remains of 130,000 unidentified French and German soldiers.
The Battlefield of Verdun
The remains of 160,000 soldiers, never recovered, still lie beneath the former battlefield, which once covered the entire area surrounding the Douaumont ossuary.
This vast burial site is a protected area.
Preserved in its original, war-scarred state, the landscape has largely been reclaimed by nature.
Dense vegetation, bushes, and trees now grow amidst the old trenches and shell craters, softening their contours.
However, some areas of the battlefield, villages, and farmland have been converted into crops or urbanised zones.
Thus, every year, usually after severe weather, the remains of three or four soldiers resurface. One of these poignant discoveries occurred on May 28, 2013.
German tourists stumbled upon a bone while exploring the desolate ruins of Fleury-devant-Douaumont. Further excavations revealed the skeletons of 26 French soldiers who had died from their wounds and were buried in the cellar of a village house converted into an advanced first-aid post.
The house, along with the entire village, was destroyed by German bombing, burying the remains of these soldiers for nearly a century, as the village was never rebuilt and was preserved in its wartime state.
However, only seven of the soldiers wore military identification tags, and only three of their descendants could be found. Two people chose to repatriate their grandfathers’ remains to their hometowns, while the third opted for burial alongside his comrades in the Douaumont cemetery.
A moving ceremony was held on December 5, 2013, in honour of these French soldiers, during their reburial in the cemetery with full military honours.
An equally moving discovery occurred on May 2, 1991, when the remains of the French writer Alain Fournier and 20 of his comrades were exhumed in Saint-Rémy-la-Calonne.
Douaumont Cemetery
Douaumont Cemetery was opened on a section of the battlefield and was inaugurated on September 29, 1929, in the presence of President Doumergue.
A multitude of white crosses adorn the slopes and summit of Douaumont Hill, below the imposing ossuary and Lantern of the Dead.
The cemetery covers an area of 144,380 square metres and contains the remains of 16,142 identified French soldiers who died during the Battle of Verdun.
Among them are 592 Muslim soldiers of the French Colonial Forces, whose graves, in the Muslim section, are oriented towards Mecca.
In 2006, President Chirac inaugurated the Memorial Mosque located to the east of the necropolis.
Following this inauguration, the remains of the soldiers discovered at Fleury-devant-Douaumont in 2013 were interred in the adjacent section.
A Memorial Wall dedicated to the memory of Jewish soldiers was also inaugurated in the western part of the cemetery in 1938.
Marshal Pétain decided to grant a place of honour to General Anselin, who had volunteered to lead the assault on Fort Douaumont and died on October 24, 1916. His grave was thus placed at the foot of the grand staircase, on the southern slope of Douaumont Hill.
Lantern of the Dead
The Lanterne des Morts – Lantern of the Dead marks the centre of the 137-metre-long Douaumont Ossuary. Designed by architects Léon Azema, Jacques Max Edrei, and Jacques Hardy, the monument shape evokes a massive sword planted in the ground.
Standing 46 metres high, one meter for each sector of the Battle of Verdun, the Lanterne des Morts acts as a beacon, casting its protective light at night over the surrounding countryside and the battlefield, where thousands of soldiers still rest.
A panoramic viewpoint helps you better understand the layout of the battlefield. The imposing bell, the Bourdon de la Victoire (Victory Bell) that tops the tower, tolls during official ceremonies. Access to the ossuary is through the Lantern of the Dead, at the rear of the building, which also leads to the museum located on the first floor.
Inside, detailed models of the battlefield and numerous artefacts from the Battle of Verdun are on display, including a Minenwerfer, a remarkably well-preserved German 76mm mortar classified as a historical monument. Don’t miss the film about the Battle of Verdun, shown in the ground-floor room near the ticket office; it offers valuable insight into the stakes of this historic conflict.
Douaumont Ossuary
The Douaumont Ossuary was designed as a cloister with alcoves and two apses, and a chapel. It houses the remains of 130,000 unknown soldiers, French and German, who died in 1916.
On August 22, 1920, Marshal Pétain laid the foundation stone of this ossuary which later received the remains of soldiers killed in the different sectors of the battlefield. The ossuary was inaugurated on September 18, 1927.
Several commemorative ceremonies have been held there since.
The first reconciliation ceremony, presided over by French President François Mitterrand and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, took place on September 22, 1984.
In 2008, President Sarkozy presided over the first Armistice Day ceremony held at Douaumont since November 11, 1918.
On February 9, 2014, the name of Peter Freundl, a German soldier who died on May 28, 1916, was inscribed on the vault of the Douaumont ossuary, alongside those of the French soldiers.
The north wall resembles a cloister opened with 18 alcoves, reminiscent of side chapels, each containing two tombs.
Each of the two apses marking the end of the cloister contains five tombs.
These 46 graves correspond to the 46 main sectors of the Battle of Verdun.
Each grave rests above a crypt containing the remains of unknown soldiers from that sector, whose names are engraved on the alcove walls, alongside the names of veterans’ associations.
The Douaumont Ossuary also pays tribute to those who died in the Indochina War and the Algerian War.
The long cloister is bathed in a soft amber light that filters through the tall stained-glass windows of the south wall, creating a hushed atmosphere conducive to contemplation.
Upon leaving, head towards the north wall, where narrow windows offer a direct view of the crypts containing thousands of piled-up bones, the remains of soldiers whose identities remain unknown.
A visit to the Douaumont Ossuary is an incredibly moving experience!
Centenary of the Battle of Verdun on May 29, 2016
Indeed, the German filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff orchestrated a performance involving 3,400 young Germans and French, which included a battle reenactment near the ossuary.
This performance, accompanied by the musical group Tambours du Bronx, sparked outrage and widespread criticism, denouncing a lack of dignity and respect for the fallen soldiers and their memory.
Other sites of the Battle of Verdun:
Citadel of Verdun – Sacred Way – Abri 320 – Bayonet Trench – Fortof Douaumont – Fleury-devant-Douaumont “Village Détruit – Maginot Monument in Fleury-devant-Douaumont
Department of Meuse – Lorraine region – Grand Est
Coordinates: Lat 49.207423 – Long 5.424571
