Fleury-devant-Douaumont before WWI
Fleury-devant-Douaumont was located on the heights of Douaumont Hill, about 8 km northeast of Verdun, and had 422 inhabitants on the eve of the First World War.
The village had no particular history until the end of the 19th century, when a line of forts was built at Douaumont, Souville, Vaux, and Froideterre after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. These extensive works initially triggered a period of prosperity to the village, with the emergence of small shops, workshops, and an inn to meet the needs of workers and soldiers.
However, when the Battle of the Marne broke out in 1914, Fleury-devant-Douaumont found itself several kilometres from the front lines, and despite housing numerous soldiers for the next two years, the anticipated economic benefits did not materialise.
16 February 1916
On February 16, 1916, as the front line drew closer, the inhabitants of Fleury-devant-Douaumont were evacuated to Verdun and Bras-sur-Meuse, and Fort Douaumont fell to the Germans on February 24, 1916.
The Germans relentlessly bombarded the area and captured Fort Vaux on June 7, 1916, placing Fleury-devant-Douaumont on the front line of the fighting. The village, along with La Poudrière, an outpost located further down the slope, fell to the Germans on June 23 and July 11. Despite sporadic French attempts to retake control, the village changed hands repeatedly between French and German control between June 23 and August 18, 1916, when French colonial troops from Morocco eventually retook it.
But Fleury-devant-Douaumont was nothing but a vast field of ruins! However, strategically located, it served as a launching point for the French offensives that led to the recapture of the forts of Douaumont and Vaux.
The village of Fleury-devant-Douaumont was classified as a Red Zone in 1918 and officially designated as“Mort pour la France” (Dead for France).
Fleury-devant-Douaumont, Village Detruit
In 1919, Fleury-devant-Douaumont was declared Village Détruit – Destroyed village, sadly joining eight other villages in the Meuse region that had suffered the same fate and were never rebuilt (Beaumont-en-Verdunois, Bezonvaux, Cumières-le-Mort-Homme, Douaumont, Fleury-devant-Douaumont, Haumont-près-Samogneux, Louvemont-Côte-du-Poivre, Ornes et Vaux-devant-Damloup).
In the early 1930s, the former villagers erected a war memorial on the upper part of the site and built the memorial chapel on the site of the former church.
Named Notre-Dame de l’Europe in 1979, its facade bears an inscription symbolising international reconciliation and paying tribute to all those who fought during the conflict. It is also adorned with a fresco depicting a Pietà and a stained-glass window by Grüber, representing an infantryman.
The village of Fleury-devant-Douaumont has been preserved in its original war state. The lanes, which today crisscross, follow the layout of its former streets, and boundary markers indicate the locations of the dwellings that once stood there.
A path leads to La Poudrière and the remains of the old guard post at Ravin des Vignes, which offers a glimpse into the village’s past.
Fleury-devant-Douaumont – The discovery of 26 Poilus
In 2013, Fleury-devant-Douaumont was the site of a poignant discovery when German tourists stumbled upon human remains in a crater near the chapel.
Indeed, a farm once stood on the site of this crater, which was converted into an advanced aid station during the First World War.
The bodies of 26 French soldiers, who had died from their wounds, were being kept in the cellar of the farm when it was destroyed by a German bomb.
Subsequent excavations unearthed their complete skeletons, but only seven could be identified thanks to their military dog tags.
Remarkably, the descendants of three of these soldiers were located. Two families chose to repatriate their grandfathers’ remains to their respective hometowns, while the third wished for their grandfather to be laid to rest alongside his comrades at Douaumont.
On December 5, 2013, an official ceremony at the Douaumont Ossuary paid tribute to the memory of the 26 French soldiers (Poilus), 24 of whom were re-interred in the military necropolis.
A sculpture carved from a tree trunk was placed in the crater. It depicts a Poilu, a French soldier of the First World War, watching over what had been these 26 soldiers’ graves for nearly a century.
The War Memorial stands in the upper part of Fleury-devant-Douaumont. Numerous sculptures are also placed throughout the site. Each is significant, but the most moving is undoubtedly the Colombe de la Paix – Dove of Peace, engraved in a concrete slab.
The dove’s silhouette indeed reflects the original outline of the village and is adorned with inlaid stones marking the locations of former houses.
Access to the site is free.
Other sites of the Battle of Verdun:
Citadel of Verdun – Sacred Way – Douaumont Ossuary and National Cemetery – Abri 320 – Bayonet Trench – Fort of Douaumont – Maginot Monument in Fleury-devant-Douaumont
Department of Meuse – Lorraine – Grand Est
Coordinates Fleury-devant-Douaumont: Lat 49.198109 – Long 5.427765
