Leaving Hattonchâtel, a German cemetery will be seen on the left, beside the village cemetery.
Vigneulles is a country town of considerable importance, built on the western fringe of the Woëvre Plain, at the foot of the chain of hills which separates the latter from the Valley of the Meuse. In the original plan of mobilisation it was to be the main French Headquarters.
Numerous houses have been destroyed.
From Vigneulles to St. Mihiel there is a choice of two roads: one, direct, via Chaillon (Itinerary A, p. [41]); the other, less direct, passes through Apremont, Brûlé Wood and Ailly Wood, and is much more interesting (Itinerary B, p. [42]).
A.—From Vigneulles to St. Mihiel, via Chaillon
At Vigneulles take G.C.D. 10 on the left, 100 yards from the church, and follow it for about 500 yards, then take G.C. 9 on the right, which passes through the village of Creüe.
The woods which rise above the village form a kind of curtain, and the Germans, well aware of its importance (the Grand French Manœuvres of 1891 had taken place in this district), seized it at the end of September, 1914, and later built a light railway which formed their main line of communication with St. Mihiel. Hidden in this recess, the railway escaped observation and was worked, with but little damage, throughout the war.
Leaving Creüe, the road follows the valley through which runs the Creüe Brook.
Before entering Chaillon, the tourist passes a German cemetery on the right. Many of the houses in this village, as well as the church, were destroyed.