MÉMORIAL DE VERDUN

Created in 1967, under the aegis of academician and veteran Maurice Genevoix, the Verdun Memorial is a major place of history and remembrance, anchored at the heart of the battlefield. After more than two years of expansion and renovation work, the Memorial reopened its doors on 21 February 2016 on the occasion of the Centenary of the start of the battle. On the battlefields, in a completely renewed, educational and emotional tour, the museum offers an immersion in the Battle of Verdun through the figure of the combatant, whether French or German. More than 2,000 objects from the collections, a multitude of previously unpublished photos, French and German testimonies and exceptional audiovisual displays combine to evoke the fighting experience of these men who came from all over the world. The exhibition is spread over three levels: - At the entrance, visitors are invited to situate the Battle of Verdun in time and history. At the heart of the visit, a 100m2 audiovisual show evokes the dramatic fighting experience of these men on a devastated battlefield, while a crypt allows visitors to enter the fragile intimacy of a soldier exposed to cannon fire. - The second level allows visitors to discover the airmen, artillerymen and staff who took part in the battle, as well as life in the Meuse at the immediate rear of the front, where the doctors worked without respite. - On the last level of the visit, entirely created for the Centenary, the walls of the Memorial open onto the surrounding landscape. It also includes interactive terminals, a temporary exhibition area, a documentation centre and an educational room. Today, the Verdun Memorial has 1,800 m2 of permanent exhibition space, 175 m2 of temporary exhibition space, a 120-seat auditorium, an educational room, a documentation centre, a bookshop, a cafeteria and two terraces with panoramic views. In this new, enlarged and redesigned structure, the Verdun Memorial is developing a varied and multidisciplinary cultural and educational programme, representative of its new identity, in order to diversify approaches to the Battle of Verdun, to be open to current events and to reach out to all types of public.