Chapter 7

ÉTAVIGNY CHURCH SEEN FROM THE CEMETERY

The road descends into a rather picturesque valley. Through it runs a small river, the Grivelle, which we must cross, then go through Antilly, turning to the right on entering, and to the left at the fork in the road just after leaving the village.

We arrive atBetz(26 km.). Turn to the left near the church.

Betz did not suffer much from the guns, but some of its houses were burnt by the Germans, notably the Hôtel du Cheval Blanc (see p.102), which can still be recognised by its signboard.

HÔTEL DU CHEVAL BLANC AFTER THE FIRE

The castle was occupied by a German headquarters-staff, who left it in a deplorable state.

During the pursuit the French officers had to abandon the idea of lodging there: one of them records in his notebook: "The German officers have left disgusting traces of their passage; we see slices of melon, bearing the marks of their teeth, in the wash-hand-basins, and enormous heaps of empty and broken wine bottles."

The tourist will cross Betz by the main street, which is seen in the above illustration, and at the further end of the village he will go straight on under the railway, leaving the road toNanteuil-le-Haudouinon the right.

This last-named town has not been included in the itinerary, although it played an important part in the ultimate manœuvre attempted by Von Kluck—that of outflanking the French left wing. The paved road which leads to it is bad, and the other roads by which one could rejoin the planned route are extremely rough. Below we give a view of a corner of this battlefield. It gives some idea of the great plain which extends from Betz to Nanteuil, where the 7th and 61st French Divisions resisted with desperate energy the furious attacks of the Fourth German Corps. The dead horses seen in the photograph belonged to a French battery. The 75's, fully exposed, supported the foot-soldiers in their efforts until they came almost into actual contact with the enemy.

After passing under the railway the road rises to the plateauand soon brings us near a commemorative monument, on the right (view on following page).

Thence it passes through the Woods of Montrolles, where the 61st Division particularly distinguished itself on the evening of September 8. Worn out with fatigue, its reserve supplies exhausted two days before, it yet, by a supreme effort, succeeded in driving back the Germans.

THE PLAIN OF NANTEUIL-LE-HAUDOUIN

MONUMENT AT BETZ

Having passed through the Woods of Montrolles, we soon come to a fork. Here take the road on the left.

To the right are the Heights of Bouillancy, where the French artillery was placed; on the left the Plateau of Étavigny on which were the German batteries.

A hollow, where runs a river, separates the two positions, between which the artillery duel was intense, preparing and accompanying infantry assaults which succeeded one another from September 6 to 9, with alternate advances and retirements.

The road then returns to Acy, skirting the wall of the Castle park. We again pass the church and, on leaving the village, cross the Gergogne. Immediately after the bridge turn to the left towardsVincy(35½ km.). The photograph below shows that this village also suffered from incendiarism and bombardment.

After passing through Vincy, bear to the left in order to pass in front of the Manœuvre distillery, leaving the hamlet of that name on the left.Étrépilly(41 km.) will be reached by the middle road of the crossways, which are about 1 km. further on past the distillery.

This Vincy-Étrépilly line formed part of the defensive front established by the Germans west of the Ourcq, marked out further north by the localities of Betz, Étavigny, and Acy, which have just been visited, and more to the south, by the position seen on panorama B (pp.90-91). The Germans had made trenches and machine-gun shelters over the whole plateau, which stretches on the right of the road towards the farms of Poligny and Champfleury. On the right slope of the road one can still see the dug-outs where the snipers sheltered themselves.

The position was attacked from September 6 to 9 by the 63rd Division of the Seventh Corps and the 56th of the Lamaze Group which carried the advance positions constituted by the farms of Nogeon, Poligny, and Champfleury. They were stopped, however, on the line itself until the general withdrawal of the German troops.

BURNT FARM AT VINCY

To reach the spot where the view below was taken, follow the track which branches off the road from Vincy to Étrépilly, between the memorial and the burnt hangar. This is the road we see across the middle of the panorama.The tourist finds himself at the southern extremity of the Vincy-Étrépilly position, on the site of a German battery which was severely treated by the French 75's.

C.PANORAMA OF TROCY, ÉTRÉPILLY, LA THÉROUANNE.Road from Vincy to ÉtrépillyTrocyMemorialBurnt ShedChurch of ÉtrépillyValley of the ThérouanneHeights of Penchard

C.PANORAMA OF TROCY, ÉTRÉPILLY, LA THÉROUANNE.

In the background is seen the Trocy Plateau, separated from the road by a hollow, in which flows a tributary of the Thérouanne. On the Trocy Plateau, where this itinerary will in due course lead the reader, the Germans had established their powerful artillery, composed of heavy and light batteries, which swept the whole battlefield from Nogeon Farm to Barcy, taking in Puisieux and Marcilly. Beyond the valley of the Thérouanne, south of Étrépilly, stretches the position of which the details appear in panorama B (pp.90-91). The view extends to the wooded Heights of Penchard, which are outlined against the horizon.

On the brow of the hill where stands the observer, fierce battles were fought at the time of the attacks on Étrépilly. The 350th Infantry did once, on the morning of the 7th, make their way into the village, following the valley of the Thérouanne, but violent counter-attacks forced them back. They returned to the charge at night and climbed from the river's edge to the plateau. They were greeted by the fire of a machine-gun section upon which two companies flung themselves with fixed bayonets. Two field-pieces were taken. The French troops maintained their position until ten o'clock in the evening, but finally, as the German reinforcements poured in, were obliged to descend the slope and cross back to the right bank of the Thérouanne.

Returning to the Étrépillyroad we pass in front of the memorial raised by the engineers in front of the cemetery, at the place where the battles of Étrépilly reached their climax. A military grave has been made behind the memorial.

MEMORIAL AT ÉTRÉPILLY

The Germans had entrenched themselves in the cemetery, where they succeeded in checking the night attack of the Zouaves on September 7. The Second Regiment, coming from Barcy, reached the village and carried it at the point of the bayonet.

Without stopping, the Zouaves began to climb the height at the foot of which Étavigny is built.

Their rush carried them as far as the cemetery, and here, met by a terrific fire from the machine-guns, they tried to keep the position, but German reinforcements having come up, they were forced to abandon the plateau, evacuate the village, and return to their trenches at Barcy. Lieutenant-Colonel Dubujadoux, commanding the regiment, was killed; three-fourths of the officers and half the effective force fell in the course of this heroic charge.

In front of the memorial the twisted metal framework of a burnt shed is to be seen. According to certain accounts, the Germans, before evacuating the position on September 9, used this shed to burn the bodies of those of their soldiers who fell in the battles of Étrépilly. Some of the inhabitants say that to these were added the badly wounded, whose hurts were such that they could not be removed.

BURNT SHED

We believe, as a matter of fact, that a large pyre of corpses was set alight here by the Germans, who generally burn their dead when they cannot carry them away. But the hangar was destroyed by the French artillery which fired repeatedly on that side of the plateau at the battery of 77's installed there, at the cemetery, and at the German trenches.

In the cemetery lie the heroes who were killed in attempting to regain it.

From the cemetery the road descends towards Étrépilly.

Turn to the right at the foot of the slope into Étrépilly and on leaving the village take the road on the left; cross the river, turn again to the left and follow the track which climbs the plateau. After a few hundred yards the right slope disappears.It was at this point that panorama D was taken, showing, from the German side, the same battlefield seen from the French side in panorama B (pp.90-91).

D.PANORAMA OF THE BATTLEFIELD OF THE FRENCH RIGHTHeights of PenchardMontheonBarcyHeights of CuisyFactory at MarcillyRoad from Marcilly to ÉtrépillyFarm of NongloireFarm of Champfleury

D.PANORAMA OF THE BATTLEFIELD OF THE FRENCH RIGHT

The road on which the tourist now stands goes on to the heights of Varreddes. Bordered with trenches and machine guns, it constituted the principal line of the German defence south of Étrépilly, the advance lines resting thus: the first on Penchard—Monthyon—Heights of Cuisy; the second on Chambry—Barcy—Marcilly. In this theatre of operations fought, south of the Marcilly-en-Étrépilly road, the 55th (Reserve) Division, the 45th Division and the Moroccan Brigade; at Marcilly and on the plateau north of Étrépilly, which is outlined on the extreme right of the panorama and crowned by the Champfleury Farm the 56th (Reserve) Division.

A CORNER OF THE BATTLEFIELD

Leaving the trenches hastily dug on the Chambry—Barcy—factory of Marcilly line, the troops of the Lamaze group, before getting up to the German trenches, had to cross two kilometres of uncovered ground, under terrible fire. It was in one of these attacks, starting from Barcy, that Major d'Urbal (brother of the general) fell at the head of his Zouaves as, waving his cane, he drew them along. He was brought back to the French lines, thanks to the devotion of one of the few officers who survived the attack, helped by two Chasseurs d'Afrique. Because of his great height the commander's body could not be carried back, and they were obliged to place it on a horse. The group returned thus to Barcy under a hailstorm of bullets, where a shell-hole in the cemetery served for a grave.

A CORNER OF THE BATTLEFIELD

In the counter-attacks, the Germans as they left their trenches also suffered serious losses, as one can judge from the preceding photograph, which was taken in front of the position.

The tourist will return to Étrépilly by the road he came, leaving the church (the roof of which was hit by several shells) on the right, and taking the Trocy Road on the left.

(19 km.)viaTrocy,Gué-à-Tresmes,Varreddes.

(19 km.)

viaTrocy,Gué-à-Tresmes,Varreddes.

FARM THAT WAS SHELLED

The beautiful shady road that leads from, Étrépilly to Trocy first crosses a hollow, then winds up the hillside to the plateau on whichTrocyis built (3 km.). On arriving, turn to the left and so enter the heart of the village.

Trocy did not actually suffer from the German attacks, but it was bombarded by the French artillery. In front of the horse-pond, on the left of the little church, stands a farm (view opposite) which in 1917 still showed traces of the "75" shell which damaged its roof. Other houses were completely destroyed.

The Germans had concentrated their chief artillery forces on the Trocy Plateau. Heavy and light batteries were in position north and south of the village, the greater part being north, between Manœuvre, Plessy-Placy, and Trocy.

The intense cannonade poured from this dominating platform very much hampered the progress of the French centre.

The position was evacuated by the Germans on the 9th, not without serious losses of light artillery, as shown by the photograph below and that at the top of the following page.

GERMAN GUN DESTROYED ON TROCY PLATEAU

GERMAN GUNS DESTROYED ON TROCY PLATEAU

The limber (shown below), abandoned at the side of the road, is an infantry limber which contained rifle and machine-gun cartridges.

The French artillery which swept the plateau hit it in the course of the retreat.

GERMAN LIMBER ON TROCY PLATEAU

GATE OF TROCY

Rounding the horse-pond, we take the road which runs under the monumental gateway, a view of which is given above.

This gate is one of the chief remains of the fortifications which guarded Trocy in the Middle Ages.

It will be seen that the strategic importance of the position has at all times been appreciated at its full value.

Having passed through the gate, we take, 100 yards further on to the left, the road that dips into a hollow, on the opposite slope of which stands out the fine farm of Beauvoir.

We reach this farm by a zig-zag ascent which comes out on the Route Nationale (N. 36). We then turn to the right and go down towardsGué-à-Tresmes.

This little place played the part, in relation to the extreme German left, that Trocy played in the centre. It was a heavy artillery position supporting the advanced line of defence.

THE BILLIARD-TABLE OF THE CHÂTEAU

At the entrance to the village, on the left side of the road, is a large residence surrounded by a park. It was occupied by the Germans and converted into a field hospital. In order to make room rapidly, the furniture was flung outside. It was thus that the billiard-table was found in the park. A soldier who was evidently a lover of fresh air used it as a shelter. On the opposite photograph can be seen a fish-kettle which did duty as a basin: frequent washing being indispensable during those hot September days.

The façade shown in the view is the one which faces the road.

PERSONAL BELONGINGS LEFT AT GUÉ-À-TRESMES BY THE GERMANS

A certain number of German wounded died in the hospital and were buried in the garden; their belongings were left behind at the time of the retreat, as shown in the opposite photograph.

This retreat must have taken the occupants unawares, for a meal was on the officers' table when the French troops entered the château.

At the cross-roads, about 300 yards beyond the château, go to the left along the Thérouanne. 200 yards further along this roadis seen (on the right) the place where a group of German artillery was hidden. Well-screened in the hollow shown in the view below, several heavy batteries, for a long time out of reach of the 75's, made extremely difficult the advance of the French right on the Plateau of Chambry-Barcy. They also hampered the left, of the British army and the 8th French Division on the left bank of the Marne. In the course of this tour, we have already seen several examples of the German battery positions. Wherever the ground allowed of it, the guns were placed in a hollow, visible only to aerial observers. Telephones linked them up with the posts established on the ridges whence the firing was directed.

Returning to the Route Nationale, turn to the left towards Varreddes.On both sides of the road, which was their main way of retreat, the Germans had made lines of defence: trenches were dug and furnished with machine-guns, and light batteries were established as supports.

The whole, which joined up with the defence works of Trocy, constituted a position of withdrawal for the Étrépilly-Varreddes line, seen in panorama B (pp.90-91). This was the first stage of the retreat on September 9.

HOLLOW WHERE THE GERMAN ARTILLERY WAS PLACED.

This panorama was taken at the intersection of the Meaux-Soissons road (N 36) and a track which leads to Étrépilly, in the field bordering the road and where German machine-guns were established in order to sweep with their fire the Route Nationale and the bottom of the hollow.

E.PANORAMA OF THE VARREDDES HOLLOWVarreddesRoad from Meaux to SoissonsThe Ourcq CanalRoad to Étrépilly

E.PANORAMA OF THE VARREDDES HOLLOW

It is easy to understand why the Germans attached so much importance to the Varreddes position.

The slopes west of the hollow (they form the background on the left of the panorama) were protected from the blows of the French artillery, and by availing themselves of this protection the Germans could easily bring up supplies or relieve the defenders on the crests, facing Chambry-Barcy. This ensured their resistance until the moment when the general trend of the action forced them to fall back.

After having examined panorama E,continue the descent towardsVarreddes(12 km.). Before crossing the canalone can see, on the right, a '75' shell which has remained fixed in the wall of an inn, of which the sign has now become: "A l'obus."

We now enter the High Street of Varreddes.

At the entrance of the village is a certain number of houses that were damaged by the bombardment.

GERMAN WOUNDED IN FRONT OF VARREDDES TOWN-HALL

The German wounded, forsaken during the hasty retreat of September 9, were sheltered and nursed at the town-hall. They are seen in the opposite view. When leaving the village the Germans took twenty hostages with them, all very old, among them being the vicar. Three succeeded in escaping, but, for the others, the retreat proved (as will be seen) a veritable torture. Seven of them were murdered.

On the first day they were forced to march seventeen miles. M. Jourdain, aged 77, and M. Milliardet, aged 78, taken away with only slippers on their feet, were the first to fail from exhaustion: they were shot point-blank. Soon after, M. Vapaillé suffered the same fate.

The next day M. Terré, an invalid, fell, and was killed with revolver-shots; M. Croix and M. Llévin stumbled in their turn and were also shot.

TREE PIERCED BY A 75 SHELL

All three were from 58 to 64 years of age. Finally, M. Mesnil, aged 67, utterly exhausted, gave in: his skull was smashed in with blows from the butt end of a rifle.

The other hostages, better able to endure, held on as far as Chauny and were sent to Germany by rail. They were repatriated five months later.

After having traversed Varreddes and before re-crossing the canal, a tree will be noticed on the left of the road (the 38th on the way out) which has been pierced by a '75' shell as if by a punching-press.

F.PANORAMA OF THE VARREDDES HOLLOWVarreddesRoad from Meaux to SoissonsThe Ourcq CanalRoad to Étrépilly

F.PANORAMA OF THE VARREDDES HOLLOW

40 yards beyond the canal, on the right, are seen several tracks which scale the heights. We climb the one on the rightup to the summit, where the above panorama was taken. This gives a view of the Varreddes hollow in the opposite direction to that of panorama E (pp.112-113).

Germigny, seen on the right of the photograph, is known through having been Bossuet's summer residence. The Germans had a heavy battery there, which bombarded Meaux in the early days of September. On the 8th they re-crossed the Marne, blowing up the bridge behind them.

The appearance of a French reconnoitring party composed of a sergeant-major and nine men had sufficed to cause the evacuation of the position, which, with the river behind it, seemed a dangerous one. These ten heroes were killed in the course of the battle and buried at Germigny. On the 9th, the Marne was crossed on a pontoon bridge built by British engineers, under fire, whose heroic tenacity triumphed after seventeen fruitless attempts.

The Germans, attacked besides on the heights where the tourist now stands, were obliged to retire rapidly from the hollow by the Soissons Road, under fire from the French batteries.

On the crest of the hill a track crosses the ascending one, near two isolated walnut-trees.On the right this road goes to Étrépilly; it constituted the German line of defence which is the subject of panorama B (pp.90-91).

The tourist will go to the left between the two walnut-treesand explore the crest which formed the redoubtable position occupying the background of the view on p.89. It was well provided with trenches, machine-guns and light batteries, and all attacks against it failed, until September 9.

Turning again to the left 1 km. further on, at the first fork in the road, the reader will follow a little path which brings him back to the Route Nationale at the point where he left it. The walk takes about 30 minutes.The two paths, by which the ascent and descent have been made, served the Germans as channels for bringing up supplies. Their rearguard, which disputed the ground foot by foot, was routed there by a bayonet attack.

We now return towards Meaux.The retreating Germans followed this road, but in a contrary direction and pursued by the French shells.

At the highest point, on the right, is seen the trunk of a tree decapitated by artillery fire, at the top of which the workmen of the entrenched camp of Paris have fixed a branch to form a cross: humble and touching tribute to the brave men killed in going up to the attack.

Before arriving at Meaux we have a beautiful view of the town.We pass under the railway; then, on the right, take the N. 3 or Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Nicolas, which brings us back to theCathedral(19 km.).

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