ETAIN
Etain was looted by the Swedes in 1622, during the reign of Louis XIII. Later, it was often taken and retaken by the French, Germans, Spaniards and Lorrains. Its fortifications were destroyed under Louis XIV. By the Treaty of Vienna (18th century) the town was definitely ceded to France.
In October, 1792, Kellermann’s advance guards, in pursuit of the Prussians, encamped at Etain.
ETAIN. THE TOWER AND SOUTH FRONT OF THE CHURCH The tower was used as an observation-post by the Germans.
ETAIN. CHEVET AND NORTH FRONT OF CHURCH
In 1914, the town was bombarded by the Germans on August 24, from 1 p.m. to 2 a.m. the next day, and again on the 25th at 11 o’clock, with incendiary shells.
ETAIN CHURCH. CENTRAL NAVE SEEN FROM THE CHOIR
Many of the inhabitants were killed on the 24th. On the 25th others, who had taken refuge in the cellars of the Town Hall, perished under the ruins of that building. 200 fled along the Verdun road. A girl telephonist remained at her post and kept in touch with Verdun every quarter of an hour. Her last message (on the 25th) was: “A bomb has just fallen on the office.”
The same day French troops routed the German XXXIIIrd D.R. in a glorious battle at Etain. Nevertheless, the enemy occupied the town, which was systematically looted. Every two days train-loads of furniture, linen, wines, food, cloth, boots, tools and raw materials were sent to Germany.
In April, 1915, French troops captured Hills 219 and 221, Hôpital Farm (formerly belonging to Order of St. Jean de Rhodes) and Haut-Bois Farm, reaching the immediate vicinity of the town, without, however, entering it.
In the partly destroyed town, N. 18 is picked up again, which take to the left. The greatly damaged church (photos, pp. [141] and [142]) is seen on the right. Its belfry was torn open by the bombardments, leaving visible the interior, where the Germans had installed an observation-post.
ETAIN CHURCH. LIGIER RICHIER’S “DESCENT FROM THE CROSS”
Viollet-le-Duc considered the Church of Etain, with its three naves, as one of the five most remarkable churches in the Meuse province. Begun in the 13th century, it was completed in the 15th. The imposing choir, with its large, many-mullioned windows, is 15th century. In the right aisle are a remarkable holy-water basin, and a statue of Our Lady of Mercy by Ligier Richier. The basin is of bell-metal and, like those of Nevers and Bourges,
PANORAMIC VIEW OF THE MEUSE HEIGHTS
Panoramic view
FIÉVÈTERIE FARM AND VILLAGE OF EIX
Seen from the Verdun road.
shaped like a mortar, but the epitaph round it proves its sacred origin. The Ligier Richier group (1528) represents the Virgin Mary gazing on the dead body of Christ. It differs slightly from that of Clermont-en-Argonne, attributed to the same sculptor.
Beyond Etain, N. 18 crosses the Orne stream (photo, p. [141]) and the military defences of the town, of which several concrete works remain.
The road crosses Woëvre Plain. Shortly before reaching the level-crossing, before arriving at the railway station and village of Abaucourt, the Meuse Heights can clearly be seen on the horizon, at the end of Woëvre Plain (panorama above).
Abaucourt
Go through Abaucourt (razed to the ground) to Fiévèterie Farm (in ruins), which lies at the foot of the Meuse Heights (photo, p. [144]). A road starts on the left of the farm and leads to the small ruined village of Eix, which was the scene of fierce fighting throughout the war.
The road up the Meuse Heights is fairly steep and passes between the Forts of Souville and Tavannes (on the right) and Moulainville Fort (on the left). It then descends in a gentle slope to Verdun, which is entered by the Faubourg Pavé and Chaussée Gate.
CONTENTS
| PAGES | |
| American Forces engaged | [4-7] |
| Map of Meuse Defences in 1914 | [8] |
| Military Operations in the St. Mihiel Salient, 1914-1918 | [9-20] |
| American Offensive in the St. Mihiel Salient, 1918 | [14-19] |
| General Map of the ground covered by the Itineraries | [21] |
| FIRST ITINERARY | |
|---|---|
| Verdun to Commercy | [22-71] |
| Map | [22] |
| Calonne Trench | [24-27] |
| Eparges | [28-33] |
| Hattonchâtel | [37-39] |
| Vigneulles to St. Mihiel, via Chaillon | [41] |
| Vigneulles to St. Mihiel, via Apremont, Brûlé Wood, and Ailly Wood | [42-46] |
| Brûlé Wood | [46-49] |
| Ailly Wood | [50-52] |
| St. Mihiel during the War | [53-54] |
| Visit to St. Mihiel | [55-69] |
| The Seven Rocks | [62] |
| Chauvoncourt | [63] |
| Fort Paroches | [64-65] |
| Fort Camp-des-Romains | [69-70] |
| Plan of Commercy | [71] |
| SECOND ITINERARY | |
| (a) Commercy to Pont-à-Mousson | [72-108] |
| Map | [72] |
| Thiaucourt | [87-88] |
| Pont-à-Mousson | [89-96] |
| Mousson | [97-101] |
| Prêtre Wood | [102-108] |
| (b) Pont-à-Mousson to Metz | [109-137] |
| Map | [109] |
| Metz | [113-137] |
| The Fortifications | [115] |
| After the Armistice | [116-119] |
| Plan of Metz | [120] |
| Visit to the Town | [121-137] |
| The Cathedral | [122-125] |
| THIRD ITINERARY | |
| Metz to Verdun, via Etain | [138-145] |
| Map | [138-139] |
| Etain | [141-143] |
BEAUTIFUL FRANCE
Paris and its environs
PARIS—home of grandeur, elegance, and wit—plays a part in France probably unequalled in any other country, and may be considered, in many respects, as the chief city of Europe, and one of the greatest in the world. Above all, it possesses eminently national qualities which ten centuries of refinement and taste have handed down to contemporary France.
It is impossible, in a few lines, to paint the exceptional charms of Paris which the whole world admires.
Its vistas of the Champs-Elysées seen from the Tuileries and the Arc de Triomphe; of Notre-Dame and the point of the City Island seen from La Concorde Bridge; of the River Seine, the Institute, the Louvre, seen from the Pont-Neuf embankment; Notre-Dame and its quays, seen from the end of St. Louis Island; the panorama of the city seen from the top of Montmartre Hill; the Avenue du Bois de Boulogne and the Bois de Boulogne itself, etc., etc.,—all are of incomparable beauty.
The city’s historical monuments are of inestimable value, and the most famous art treasures are to be found in its Museums.
The surroundings of Paris join the charm of their landscapes to the world-wide fame of their parks and castles: Versailles, whose palace and park recall the splendor of the Louis XIV. period, and where the “Trianons” have preserved graceful traces of the Court of Marie-Antoinette; St. Germain with its castle and forest; St. Cloud and its park; Sèvres and its world-renowned art porcelain factory; La Malmaison, home of Bonaparte before he became Napoleon I.; Rambouillet, Fontainebleau, Chartres with its marvelous cathedral, Maintenon, Dreux, etc.—all these form a girdle round Paris such as no other metropolis in the world can boast of.
MICHELIN TOURING OFFICES
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