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Roads To The Great War Blog

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Stand To! Western Front Assc No.106

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Destructive Music

Bottom line, the latest book of Ms. Christina Holstein is a more than welcome addition to her trilogy about the battle of Verdun and the two memorable forts, Douaumont and Vaux. It is a fine combination of the history of the battle on the left bank, its highlights and sorrows as well as being a practical guide to the visitor of this part of the battlefield. Common to all four books are their use to the military historian as well as to the dedicated or occasional visitor who wants to understand what took place in 1916 in this part of France...

... In 2016 as we commemorate the battle of Verdun, Ms. Christina Holstein´s four books are an excellent introduction to this part of our common history. To understand France and Germany of 2016 requires understanding Verdun 1916. Soldiers, historians, Europeans at large and others caring about the future of Europe will do well by reading the four books of Christina Holstein and visiting this very visible battlefield. It is a sobering experience.

Peer review, General Knud Bartels (Ret)

Historian Christina Holstein is one of the foremost experts on Verdun so among this latest offering it is good to see a new guidebook from her: Verdun – The Left Bank. This is a really excellent guidebook covering Mort Homme and the Cote 304 area in some detail: the vital left bank is often neglected by historians, let along battlefield visitors. As one would expect with Holstein the work is very well researched, there are good illustrations and excellent maps. A real must for anyone going to Verdun this year.

WW1 Centenary - Paul Reed

More for the battlefield visitor with this soft-cover book from Pen and Sword in their Battleground Europe series. This is a new guide from author Christina Holstein, and the fourth in the series to cover the fighting around Verdun. No direct British army involvement in this part of the Western Front, this was perhaps the focus of the war for the French Army. This new one is interesting for tackling a part of the battlefield that is less well known and certainly less well known to the battlefield visitor than the areas on the right bank of the Meuse, to the north and north-east of Verdun itself.

There are not the impressive forts to visit here like Douaumont and Vaux, nor the large memorials that you find near those forts. Here there is lots of woodland and no great road network to make a driving tour a good solution. So what we have in here, along with the story of the events and the history, are 3 detailed walking tours. It is pointed out that those forts and fieldworks that are on the left bank are all inaccessible. They are in a dangerous condition and unsafe to even try and enter and to do so will lead to heavy fines. You are also advised to keep to the designated paths as there is still a lot of live ammunition in the area which is dangerous so on no account should you attempt to pick any up as souvenirs. The walking tours cover the North Side of Cote (Hill) 304, which is a 10 kilometer route and should take around 4 hours to complete. There are a number of small memorials to be seen along the route and these are highlighted for you. The second tour covers the Mort-Homme, and is again about 10 kilometers and will take around 4 hours to complete. As with the others, advice is to keep clear of holes that remain in the ground as underground works are very unsafe these days. There were a number of tunnels in this area and it was also the site for some French heavy artillery positions. The final tour, the South Side of Cote 304 is slightly shorter than the other two at 9 kilometers and an estimated completion time of about 3 1/2 hours.

The fighting in this area was vicious and the memories of some who were there that are included in the book tell a tale of the death, destruction and indeed the horror faced by the men of both sides is well illustrated. Fighting in this area was really about the German army trying to outflank the forts on the right bank, and to deny the French artillery observers the high ground on the left bank. The front remained largely stalled though and was just a huge drain on men and resources for both sides and for no real advantage. Added to the rest of the story of the fighting for Verdun, this new battlefield guide makes for some interesting reading, and will make for an interesting area to visit, largely for remaining one of the areas of the battlefield that is less well explored by visitors.

As ever, these Battlefield guides are well presented and are a valuable resource to have in the car with you if you travel in this area of France. In my view they also provide good value for money and are well worth having.

Military Modelling Online - Robin Buckland

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Kentish Gazette