Discover the Remembrance Trails of World War I

Gain a better understanding of the events of World War I with four themed World War I Remembrance Trails in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region.

During World War I, the Western Front cut straight through the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region between Ypres and the Somme. Today, over 90 years since the end of the conflict, numerous silent witnesses can still be seen across the region. Memorials to the dead, military cemeteries, remembrance sites and even the remains of the bunkers from the Hindenburg Line add to the history of World War I in the same way as the movements of military troops.

To gain a better understanding of events, you can now follow four themed World War I Remembrance Trails in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, each of which focuses on a specific aspect of the conflict:

The Front extends across the whole region and highlights key trench warfare sites, including the Australian Memorial Park in Fromelles, the Battle of Loos memorial, the French National War Cemetery at Notre-Dame de Lorette, the Canadian memorial at Vimy Ridge, the German military cemetery in Neuville-Saint-Vasst, the Wellington Quarry in Arras, and the statue of the Australian “digger” in Bullecourt.

The war of movement and the first German occupation focuses on the 1914 invasion, the race for the sea, the occupation, and the Allies’ victorious offensive in 1918. This themed route recalls numerous episodes from the war in places such as Lille and its surrounding area, as well as Mauberge, Le Quesnoy and the area around Cambrai.

The British rear front highlights the responsibility the British army held for the defence of the Front between Ypres and the Somme. The army organised its logistics base along the Channel coast of France through the use of ports such as Boulogne-sur-Mer, as well as the establishment of its main HQ in Montreuil-sur-Mer and the creation of training camps, barracks and hospitals in towns such as Etaples and Wimereux.

The post-war reconstruction of areas destroyed by fighting follows the reconstruction projects carried out following World War I. After four years of military conflict, little was left standing in those areas occupied by the Front. As a result extensive rebuilding was undertaken in the area’s main towns, each of which was influenced by different architectural choices: Arras was rebuilt exactly as it was before the war, B�thune chose a neo-Flemish style, and Cambrai preferred Art Deco and Art Nouveau.

For more information visit www.remembrancetrails-northernfrance.com