- Title: Graffiti keep memories of WW1 soldiers alive in tunnels of northern France
- Date: 2nd November 2018
- Summary: WALLS OF TUNNEL COVERED IN CARVINGS CHAUWIN POINTING TO DRAWINGS ON WALL MEMORIAL TO AMERICAN SOLDIERS KILLED DURING WW1 IN FRONT OF ENTRANCE TO TUNNEL (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF THE CHEMIN DES DAMES ASSOCIATION AND WW1 ENTHUSIAST, GILLES CHAUWIN, SAYING: "These quarries were very useful, they were used for shelter, as underground fortresses. In the Somme or in Belgium, the Germans had to dig in order to hide, but here everything was already in place. There's over 10 metres of rock above us, so it's very good protection. It's a place to sleep, to rest, an infirmary, it really is a fortified underground village." VARIOUS OF CHAUWIN WALKING IN TUNNEL CHAUWIN LOOKING AT WALLS OF TUNNEL INSCRIPTIONS ON WALL LEFT BY WW1 FRENCH SOLDIER (1917) AND GERMAN SOLDIER (1915) SKULL CARVED INTO WALL (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF THE CHEMIN DES DAMES ASSOCIATION AND WW1 ENTHUSIAST, GILLES CHAUWIN, SAYING: "1917 was a terrible year, so there was a lot of broken material on their (American soldiers) road. They were arriving from Soissons on foot and the further they got from Soissons, the closer they got to the front and the worst the scenery got. So, they were well aware that they were going to take part in something extraordinary and so they had to leave a trace of their presence. They didn't know what would become of them the next day." CARVINGS LEFT ON WALL BY WW1 AMERICAN SOLDIER (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF THE CHEMIN DES DAMES ASSOCIATION AND WW1 ENTHUSIAST, GILLES CHAUWIN, SAYING: "Even at night the soldiers weren't relaxed. They stayed clothed and had shoes on their feet because at the first alert they could be forced to go, so they had to be ready. When they were sleeping on the ground, the only thing exposed on this simple bed was their head and the first thing rats do when they climb on a body is to go for the nose and ears. So, they used to make a sort of mosquito net to protect them from being bitten by rats." CARVING ON WALL NEXT TO CARICATURE OF KAISER WILHELM, THE EMPEROR OF GERMANY (SOUNDBITE) (French) PRESIDENT OF THE CHEMIN DES DAMES ASSOCIATION AND WW1 ENTHUSIAST, GILLES CHAUWIN, SAYING: "It was the spreading of the cries of expression of soldiers from the same regiment, from the same organisations because they were Knights of Columbus or Freemasons or of the same ancestry, like the Irish. Only the Irish specified on the walls that they were Americans but of Irish ancestry. Others who were of Italian, Russia, Ukrainian or Polish descent didn't specify. Only the Irish said, 'I am an American, but also, before everything, I am of Irish descent'." VARIOUS OF CARVINGS AND INSCRIPTIONS ON WALL VISITORS IN TUNNEL VARIOUS OF INSCRIPTION LEFT BY WW1 GERMAN SOLDIER RUSTED BARBED WIRED, TIN CAN AND SPADE DATING BACK TO WW1 BOTTLES DATING BACK TO WW1 IN TUNNEL VISITORS IN TUNNEL / RUSTED WW1 GERMAN HELMET INSCRIPTION ON WALL READING (Latin): "HAIL CAESAR. WE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE SALUTE YOU" TRIBUTE TO WW1 SOLDIERS WITH FRENCH, AMERICAN, GERMAN AND BRITISH FLAGS ENTRANCE TO TUNNEL
- Embargoed: 16th November 2018 14:43
- Keywords: Graffiti WW1 First World War soldiers carvings inscriptions Chemin des Dames 26th division
- Location: BRAYE-EN-LAONNOIS, FRANCE
- City: BRAYE-EN-LAONNOIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
- Reuters ID: LVA00394U3RK7
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A RE-FILE OF A PREVIEW STORY FOR THE WORLD WAR ONE CENTENARY WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY FILED ON NOVEMBER 2
A complex network of tunnels houses the memories of thousands of World War One soldiers who left their mark on the walls the Froidmont quarry located near the northeastern French town of Braye-en-Laonnois, not far from the scene of the horrific Second Battle of the Aisne.
Over 1,000 inscriptions, drawings and carvings can be found on the limestone walls of the tunnels, which stretch over 20 kilometres (12 miles) and became a refuge for German, French and American soldiers.
Most of the graffiti was left by American soldiers from the 26th "Yankee" Division, so called because it was composed entirely of National Guard units from New England which is made up of the states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island.
The tunnels were occupied from September 1914 to October 1917 by German soldiers followed by French and American troops once the territory was regained by Allied forces.
World War 1, fought out in large part on French soil between 1914 and 1918, left about 10 million dead on all sides and remains firmly anchored in French memories.
The lasting image of the war was the trenches that snaked across northern France and Belgium where soldiers, hunkered down in the mud, fought a terrible war of attrition where territorial gains could be measured in a matter of meters (yards) won over months and years.
The tunnels are now kept locked and opened only upon request so as to protect the precious history they bear on their walls after several incidents of vandalism. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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