We have now left the Somme River, but not before visiting Peronne and its World War 1 "Historial". Located in a chateau this display presents a cultural history of the War by displaying everyday objects as well as memorabilia from each of the three main combatant nations, France, Germany and England. Here are newspapers from the times, recipes for preparing food in times of rationing, games that the children were playing. It also shows the different uniforms and some of the weapons used in the war and has a great deal of contemporary footage. This was a way of getting the story behind the war and even more fully appreciating the incredible impact it had on the lives of those in these three countries.
The Peronne WW1 Historial in the Chateau. The Australian flag is second from the left and not often seen in France
We especially appreciated a special exhibit telling the story of several Australians who had fought on the Somme battlefront: a nurse who was decorated for her bravery; a man whose eyesight ruled him out of fighting but who served in welfare roles in France then brought an orphaned French boy back to Australia with him; an aboriginal man who received none of the entitlements or even the pay of normal soldiers; a composer who was still in the middle of writing a symphony when he was killed and a man who transferred to the flying corps who died in his plane and whose letters home clearly tell of his exhilaration with flying. All were poignant stories clearly told and illustrated.
The town of Peronne has a very sad history, destroyed in the Franco Prussian War, the
First World War and the Second World War. In WWI 30% of its inhabitants became civilian victims. The town was finally freed from German Occupation on September 2nd 1918 by Australian troops. The Australian flag is flown alongside those of France, Germany and Britain.
One of the Historial's excellent display rooms
We completed our World War I tour where the war officially ended, in a forest clearing six kilometres outside Compiegne. The leaders of Germany and France came together there in secret, on two separate trains, one from each direction, to meet in a railway carriage to negotiate and then sign the armistice. The agreement was reached after three days of negotiation, actually at 6am although it was not officially
announced until 11am on November 11th. We had tried to get there previously but the river had been too shallow at the banks. So this time, we cycled the 8km from Compiegne.
The same railway carriage in the same forest clearing was used by Hitler to sign the "Armistice" with France on June 22nd 1940. Hitler then had the carriage taken to Berlin where it was widely displayed and used to raise money for the war effort. When the end of the war seemed near, he burnt it in April 1945, it is assumed because he did not want it used to make him sign a capitulation. The carriage we saw is therefore a close copy, one from the next series of Railway carriages, furnished exactly like the original. The few remaining metal trims of the original which had survived the fire were also on display.
As well as the railway carriage the museum had a large and excellent collection of photos taken in the field by soldiers mainly from France and Germany. It was a fitting way to wrap up our many battlefield
and War Grave visits, because most of them were featured in these photos, in telling and terrible detail of the men in the trenches, of the injured, of the country straight after a bombardment and of day to day life in these conditions. There were photos also of the celebrations at the end of the war and of the progress of the German leaders through France and Belgium to return to Germany, flying a white flag.
The Armistice clearing (no photos were allowed in the museum and railway carriage)
Our 2013 journey has allowed us to experience the battlefields, cemeteries and stories of the First World War. It is an important part of the history of Australia, coming as it did so soon after the nation was established. There could be
no better way to become convinced of the cost and uselessness of war. Nothing was achieved except the loss of millions of lives and the laying of the seeds for World War II twenty years later.
Best Regards,
Penny and David Kerr