Part 10

It was defended by the French 45th Infantry Division (General Naulin), composed of Algerian Sharp-shooters, Zouaves and African Light Infantry, who held their ground on May 27-28, after which they were reinforced by battalions of Singalese and Marines drawn from the sector east of Rheims.

The struggle was a fierce one, and hand-to-hand fighting frequent. Finally the constant inflow of German reserves forced back the French who, on May 29, had to abandon the position, to which the enemy afterwards clung for four months. On October 1 the Germans, beaten on the previous evening by the French 5th Army on the high ground between the Aisne and Rheims, was forced to retreat. The French regained possession of Merfy and St. Thierry, and advanced as far as the outskirts of the Fort of St. Thierry, which, with Thil and Villers-Franqueux, Hermonville, Courcy and Cormicy, fell into their hands in the course of the next few days (_see map above_).

=From Cormicy to Godat Farm=

(_See Itinerary, p. 134._)

_Pass straight through Cormicy, leaving the church on the left. Take G.C. 32 to the Rheims-Laon road (N. 44), where turn to the right. Rather less than a mile further on, near the_ Maison Blanche, _is a road leading to_ =Godat Farm=. _Cars can only go as far as the canal_, the destroyed bridge (_photo above_) not having yet been rebuilt. The lock-keeper's house _seen in the photograph below_ was completely destroyed.

_Cross the canal on foot to reach Godat Farm, situated about 300 yards further on._

=Le Godat=, formerly a small fief with a castle and chapel (destroyed during the Revolution in 1793), was merely a farm and a plain country house when the war broke out. By reason of its position, north of the Aisne Canal, this bridgehead was, throughout the war, one of the most fiercely disputed points in the sector north-west of Rheims, even during the period of trench-warfare. At the time of the French offensive of April, 1917, the 44th Infantry Regiment advanced beyond Le Godat, where the French held their ground until the powerful German push of May 27, 1918.

The farm is now a mere heap of ruins. Shelters still exist in the basements.

_Return to the National Road, and turn to the left._

_The road crosses_ numerous boyaux which provided access to the front-line trenches down the hill on the right.

_Follow the National Road to_ =Chauffour Farm= (in ruins), _where take the road on the left to_ =Loivre=.

_On nearing the canal_, the ruins of the village of Loivre (entirely destroyed) _become visible_.

=From Loivre to Brimont=

=Loivre.=--_Visit the village on foot. The canal can only be crossed near the lock south-east of the village._ The destroyed bridge has been replaced by a temporary footway across the bed of the canal, which necessitates climbing down and up the banks by steep paths.

_After crossing the canal the tourist passes by the_ ruins of the Loivre Glass-Works, founded in 1864 by the descendants of the noble house of Bigault de Grandrupt, glass manufacturers of Argonne.

Loivre and its glass-works were occupied in September, 1914, by the Germans, who deported the inhabitants to the Ardennes. The village and works were re-captured during the offensive of April 16, 1917, by the French 23rd and 133rd Infantry Regiments, surnamed _Les Braves_ and _Les Lions_ respectively. Whilst other battalions outflanked the village and crossed the canal, the third battalion of _Lions_ attacked it in front. The position, powerfully organised, was stoutly defended. The attacking troops were obliged to come to a halt in front of the cemetery (a veritable bastion with concrete casemates), and before the ruins of the mill, both of which bristled with machine-guns. Withdrawing slightly to allow of a barrage of 75's, they rushed forward again under the protection of the latter. The site of the mill and the cemetery were captured, together with numerous prisoners (122 were taken in one machine-gun shelter). The ruined village was next carried in a bayonet charge, to the sound of the bugles. The captures were considerable, one battalion of 500 men alone taking 825 prisoners.

In March and May, 1918, two violent attacks were made on Loivre by the Germans, but without success. They took it on May 27, only to be driven out on October 4.

_Before the war, a road_, which has since completely disappeared, _led direct from Loivre to Brimont. To reach the latter it is now necessary to go farther north, via Bermericourt and Orainville, returning southwards by the Neufchatel to Rheims road (see Itinerary, p. 134)._

=Bermericourt.=--This hamlet, of Gallo-Frankish origin, was formerly more populous. The bombardments have literally wiped it out.

_From Bermericourt the tourist reaches_ =Orainville= _by G.C. 30, which becomes I.C. 2 after crossing the boundary line between the "departments" of the Marne and the Ardennes. At the entrance to the ruined village, near the church, turn to the right into I.C. 12, which, 1 kilometre further on, joins the road from Neufchatel to Rheims (G.C. 9), where turn to the right._

_Follow this road for four and a half kilometres to the ruins of_ =Landau Farm=, _turn to the right, then, about 200 yards further on, take the road on the left to the_ village of Brimont, entirely destroyed.

=Brimont Fort and Chateau=

(_See Itinerary, p. 134, and summary of the Military Operations, p. 154._)

Situated to the west of the road from Rheims to Neufchatel (formerly a Roman causeway which crossed the hill at _Cran de Brimont_) Brimont was already important in Roman times. It was fortified in the Middle Ages, and traces of its ancient fortifications are still to be found on the hill. The discovery of a Roman tomb in 1790 caused considerable excitement in archaeological circles, as it was believed to be the burial-place of the Frankish Chief _Pharamond_ who, according to one chronicler, had been buried on a hillock near Rheims.

In 1339, during the siege of Rheims by the English, the Duke of Lancaster had his camp at Brimont.

On several occasions, since September, 1914, the Germans deported the inhabitants of Brimont and Coucy to the Ardennes. The village is now destroyed and its church a heap of ruins.

The church was built at the beginning of the 15th century.

The four last bays of the nave, which was partly Romanesque, were altered in the middle of the 16th century.

The sacristy occupied the lower storey of the square, pointed-arch tower.

Several ancient statues were placed at the entrance to the Choir: _St Remi_, with a woman in late 15th century dress kneeling at his feet; a _Virgin_ offering grapes to the Infant Jesus in her arms (late 15th century) and a large _Christ Crucified_, dated from the middle of the 16th century. A beautiful 18th century _lectern_ of carved wood, representing an eagle standing on a massive three-sided pedestal of red and white marble, stood in front of the Choir.

_To visit the_ =Fort of Brimont=, _skirt the church on the side of the portal staircase, then take the road seen on the photograph on p. 152. The Fort is about 400 yards further on._

=The Defences North of Rheims and the Fighting in that Sector=

The =Fort of Brimont=, completed by the =Battery of the Cran de Brimont= about a mile to the east, and on the west by the =Loivre Battery=, mentioned on page 151, sweeps the whole country north of Rheims as far as the banks of the Aisne, Suippe, Retourne and the Aisne-Marne canal, the Rheims-Neufchatel, Rheims-Vouziers, Rheims-Rethel and Rheims-Laon roads, and the Rheims-Laon and Rheims-Charleville railways. About five miles east of Brimont and four miles east of Rheims is the position of =Berru= (_see p. 165_), extending along a front of about six miles, _via_ the hills of Berru and Nogent l'Abbesse. Intended by those who planned it to guard the valley of the Suippe, the Rheims-Rethe and Rheims-Vouziers roads, as well as the Rheims-Charleville and Rheims-Chalons-sur-Marne railways, it comprises the =Fort of Witry= (about 150 feet in altitude), the batteries of =La Vigie de Berru= (870 feet), and the =fort and batteries of Nogent-l'Abbesse= (670 feet).

Brimont and Berru are further covered and linked up by the =Fort of Fresne= (360 feet), situated four miles north-east of Rheims.

These defensive works, conceived and executed after the war of 1870, had, in consequence of the evolution of strategical and tactical doctrines, been abandoned or disarmed before the war of 1914. After evacuating Rheims on September 12, 1914, the Germans grasped the importance of these works, to which they clung tenaciously, after hurriedly organising them. It was against these naturally strong positions, further strengthened by trenches, that the French 5th Army, in pursuit of the enemy, found themselves brought to a standstill on the evening of September 12. From September 13 to 18, the French tried in vain to capture them. The 5th Division, under General Mangin, did succeed in capturing the =Chateau de Brimont=, in the plain, but were unable to hold it.

Later, the Germans converted these hills into one of the most formidable positions organised by them in France. Brimont, Berru, Fresne and Nogent l'Abbesse, whose guns slowly destroyed Rheims, were, so to speak, her jailers for four years.

In April, 1917, during the French offensive of the Aisne, one division, known as the "Division of aces" (because its four regiments have the fourragere decoration), penetrated into Bermericourt and advanced to the outskirts of Brimont, but was unable to hold its ground against the furious counter-attacks of the Germans. It was only in October, 1918, that the French 5th Army, in conjunction with the victorious attacks of the 4th Army in Champagne, after forcing the Germans back to the Aisne and the canal, and after crossing the Aisne canal on October 4 in front of Loivre and near Bermericourt, forced the enemy, whose communications were now threatened, to abandon one of the most valuable portions of his 1914 positions. On October 5, the French re-entered Brimont and Nogent l'Abbesse, progressed beyond Bourgogne, Cernay-les-Rheims, Beine, Caurel and Pomacle, and, in spite of desperate enemy resistance, drove back the Germans to the Suippe.

_After visiting the fort return to the village of Brimont._

From here the =Chateau de Brimont= may be visited, but this will have to be done on foot as the road has been destroyed, traces only of it being left in places (_the lower photograph on p. 152 shows the beginning of the road in the village_).

The =Chateau de l'Ermitage=, also known as the Chateau de Brimont, _is situated about 500 yards south of the village, at the entrance to a_ large park, completely devastated. It was the scene of desperate fighting (_see p. 152_).

_Return to Brimont, cross the village (skirting the church) and continue straight on to the_ =Cran de Brimont Redoubt= _on the road to Rheims._ Numerous German trenches, etc., are to be seen here.

_Turn to the right into G.C. 9, which dips down to the_ Plain of Rheims. The region hereabouts bristle with barbed-wire entanglements and is crossed with numerous trenches. It was ranged to an incredible degree by the bombardments.

_At the bottom of the hill which starts at the Cran de Brimont, cross Soulains Wood, of which only_ a few torn tree-stumps remain.

_Several hundred yards after leaving the wood, take on foot the broken road to the_ "=Cavaliers de Courcy=," situated _on the right, about 500 yards further on._

=The "Cavaliers de Courcy"=

To the north of La Neuvillette, the Aisne-Marne Canal is flanked on both sides by enormous artificial embankments planted with fir-trees and known as the "=Cavaliers de Courcy=." After their retreat in September, 1914, the Germans entrenched themselves there and clung to the east bank until April, 1917.

On April 16, 1917, the French 410th Regiment of the Line attacked the enemy's formidable positions there. This Brittany regiment set out from positions to which they had given names taken from the history of their country (_Quimper Bastion_, _Auray_, _Redon Bastion_, etc.). On the first day they carried three successive lines of defences, and advanced about a mile. On the 17th and 18th they left their zone of action, to ensure the _liaison_ on their right, and to help a brigade in difficulties on their left. For eight days they held their positions against powerful enemy counter-attacks, after having progressed to a depth of two miles and captured more than 400 prisoners, 11 bomb-throwers, and an immense amount of stores.

These positions, like the neighbouring villages, were re-taken by the Germans in May and June, 1918, and finally by the Allies in October, 1918.

_Return to the road and follow it towards Rheims. Leave on the left_ the devastated =Aviation-ground of Champagne=--now in a state of complete upheaval, due to the terrific shelling it received--_then cross the_ =Plain of Betheny= (_photo, p. 157_).

The Plain of Betheny was the scene of two important historical events: in 1901 the Tsar Nicolas II. reviewed a part of the French Army there; in August, 1909, the Great Aviation Week was inaugurated there, in the presence of an immense crowd of spectators.

_Pass under the Rheims-Laon railway by a very sharp double turning._ =Pierquin Farm=, entirely destroyed, _stood on the right a short distance further on_. The only remaining trace is the torn shapeless carcass of a large iron shed.

The railway embankment south of Pierquin Farm was fiercely disputed from September 18, 1914, onwards. Several enemy attacks against it broke down before the French 75's. During the offensive of May, 1918, the whole of this region was the scene of desperate fighting. La Neuvillette was taken on May 30, and Pierquin Farm on the 31st. On August 4, the French, after crossing the Aisne Canal, advanced to La Neuvillette, where the enemy made a desperate stand. At the beginning of October they advanced to the north of La Neuvillette, which the enemy was eventually compelled to abandon. The last inhabitants had left the locality on July 12, 1916.

_The tourist enters Rheims by the Rue de Neufchatel and the Avenue de Laon._

=La Neuvillette=

_On reaching the Avenue de Laon, the tourist, instead of entering Rheims, may turn to the right and go northwards as far as the_ village and cemetery of La Neuvillette.

The cemetery of La Neuvillette _is on the right of the road, between the last houses of Rheims and the village_. It was completely cut up by a network of first-line trenches (_photos, p. 159_).

The village of La Neuvillette, now in ruins, was the scene of desperate fighting during the German offensive of May, 1918.

Nothing remains of the 12th century church of John-the-Baptist.

The glass-works north-west of the village, by the side of the canal, are now a heap of ruins (_photo, p. 159_).

_Return to Rheims by the same road._

SECOND DAY

MORNING

=FRESNES FORT--WITRY-LES-REIMS--BERRU--NOGENT L'ABBESSE--BEINE=

(_See complete Itineraries, p. 121, and map on p. 154._)

_This Itinerary will lead the tourist through the region of the_ Forts to the north-east of Rheims, which formed the rear of the German lines during the stabilisation period of 1914-1918.

It was this line of forts that, in the German hands, held the French in check after the first Battle of the Marne. Practically the whole of these works were but little damaged by the relatively light bombardments, and have retained traces of the German organisation.

_Leave Rheims by the Avenue de Laon_ (_which begins at_ Les Pomenades, _opposite Mars Gate_), _and the Rue de Neufchatel (second street on the right), Sortie No. IX. of the Michelin Tourist Guide (see coloured plan, pp. 32-33)._

_Follow in the contrary direction the route described in the preceding Itinerary (p. 134 to p. 159) as far as the crossing in the Bermericourt-Bourgogne road, where stood_ Landau Farm, now entirely in ruins. _At this crossing take G.C. 30 on the right._ German camouflaging is still visible on the right-hand side of the road.

=Bourgogne--Fresnes=

_The village of_ Bourgogne, entirely in ruins, _is soon reached_.

The village is of very ancient origin. Formerly it was protected by a belt of moats, now partly filled in, and by earthen ramparts, almost everywhere levelled. The lines of these moats, planted with rows of elm-trees, are clearly distinguishable. There is a very extensive view from this original site.

A portion of the village was burnt by the Germans who, in 1916, destroyed the belfry of the church with dynamite.

This church (dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul), with its fine Romanesque tower, was remarkable.

The greater part of it dated from the 12th and 13th centuries. It is now in ruins (_photo above_).

_Cross straight through the village._ Numerous German signs _are still to be seen. At the cross-roads just outside the village, follow the railway, then cross it near the destroyed railway station of Fresnes. The village of_ Fresnes _is reached shortly afterwards._

_Turn to the right at the first crossing met with._ The church _stands about 100 yards away, on the left._

Norman in style, the Church of Fresnes comprises a central nave with aisles and a tower without transept. It dates back to the 12th century, but was several times extensively altered and restored both in the 18th century and in recent times.

A small porch of limestone added to the northern aisle, is reached by a round Norman bay of stone. In the corner of the porch, to the left on entering, is incrusted a fragment of a small funerary monument of the 16th century.

This church was almost entirely destroyed.

_After turning to the right at the crossing mentioned above, keep straight on._

About 2 kilometres from Fresnes the road from that village to Witry-les-Reims crosses an old Roman causeway, at the side of which, slightly to the south of Hill 118, the Fort of Fresnes was built in 1878. This fort was blown up by the Germans during their retreat in 1918. Its ruins are impressive. In the moats of the fort are German trenches and shelters extending right up to the walls of the fort.

_The village of Witry-les-Reims is next reached._ It suffered severely from the numerous bombardments, which its situation near the first lines rendered inevitable.

=Witry-les-Reims=

_After crossing the railway (l.c.) at the entrance to the village, keep straight on._ The ruined church _is on the left, near the entrance to the village_.

Except for one tower, which dates from the 12th century, the church is modern. The spire was destroyed by the Germans. The belfry, used by the enemy as an observation-post, was struck by French shells.

Like many of the villages around Rheims, Witry-les-Reims is of Gallo-Roman origin. More than two hundred Gallic sepulchres and cinerary urns have been brought to light. The objects thus discovered, including a large number of vases, now form the _Bourin_ pre-historic collection.

_After visiting the church keep straight on. At the Mairie_, of which only the front remains standing, _turn to the right into the Rue Boucton-Fayreaux. Follow this street to the Place Gambetta (about 200 yards distant), where turn to the left._ The entrance to "Pommern Tunnel," which connected up the German rear and front lines (_photo, p. 163_), is in this square.

The German inscriptions in the tunnel have been taken down, and the entrance blocked up, on account of the roof and walls giving way.

_Leaving the Place Gambetta, take the Rheims-Rethel road (N. 51) on the left, then the first street on the right to the_ =Fort of Witry=.

_Just outside the village the road crosses_ the old Roman causeway from Rheims to Treves, _and a little further on passes to the left of the_ =Fort of Witry=.

The =Fort of Witry= suffered but little from the bombardments.

_The road climbs the northern slopes of the_ Berru Hill, across numerous German trenches. _At the bottom of a short run-down, opposite the village of Berru, is a crossing of four ways. The road leading to the fort is the one straight ahead._

_On the right, among the_ numerous defences, is a German cemetery containing a monument to the dead, ornamented with somewhat rudimentary carving and bearing an epitaph dedicated to the memory of the German soldiers who fell in the battles around Rheims.

_The road continues up the slopes of Berru Hill, to the right of the way leading to the_ auxiliary battery of the fort of =Vigie de Berru=. _The top of the hill is soon reached_, on which the fort, known as the "Vigie de Berru," stands. This fort was little bombarded, and is practically intact.

=Berru Hill=, on account of its height, its sulphurous and ferruginous waters, flint quarries, and fertile soil, was inhabited in pre-historic times. At the summit, a _campignien_ workshop, and farther down, above the springs which supply the village with water, a neolithic station have been discovered. Thousands of knives, arrow-heads, scrapers, saws, and other primitive tools have been unearthed. In the Gallo-Roman times the village must have been fairly important, judging by the vestiges of the ancient buildings discovered at the foot of the hill. It was near Berru that the _Gaulish helmet_, now in the National Museum of St. Germain, was found. Towards the end of the 16th century (about 1575), during the Leaguers' struggles around Rheims, the village was fortified, to protect it from pillaging by the soldiers. The moats and glacis which surrounded it are still visible to the south, where, covered with trees, they adjoin the gardens. Subterranean places of refuge, the entrance to which is no longer known, formerly existed underneath the village.

_From the fort, the road, winds down the opposite slopes of the hill. At the bottom of the latter, leave on the right the road to the_ =Fort of Nogent l'Abbesse,= _seen on the high ground to the right._

=Nogent l'Abbesse--Beine--Berru=

(_See Itinerary, p. 160, and summary of the Military Operations, p 154._)