_Leave Verdun[1] by the Chaussée Gate. Beyond the ramparts, turn to the
left into N. 64_ (_leaving N. 3 in front, and, fifty yards further on,
N. 18 on the right_).
[1] For particulars concerning Verdun, Bras, Charny, Esnes,
Malancourt, see The Michelin Illustrated Guide. “The Battle of Verdun.”
_N. 64 follows the right bank of the Meuse, crosses the Faubourg of
Belleville, climbs the Hill of Belleville Fort, and passes close to
Froide-Terre Hill. Opposite stands_ =Bras=, at the foot of =Poivre Hill.=
To visit Verdun, Bras, Charny, Esnes, and Malancourt, see the _Michelin
Illustrated Guide_: “The Battle of Verdun.”
[Illustration: THE FORT OF DOUAUMONT AND ITS APPROACHES
(_Photographed from aeroplane in May, 1916._)]
_Extracted from The Michelin Illustrated Guide, “The Battle of
Verdun.”_
[Illustration: BRAS VILLAGE. FRENCH CEMETERY. POIVRE HILL IN BACKGROUND]
_At the entrance to_ =Bras=, _on the left, there is a_ large French
military cemetery (_photo above_). _In the village_, completely ruined,
_turn to the left into G.C. 38, which soon crosses the Est Canal and
then the Meuse_ (_on the right, under the_ ruined bridge: fortifications
and shelters). =Charny=, _about one mile from Bras, is next reached_.
_G.C. 38 crosses the ruins of this village (level-crossing on leaving),
then turns to the right, leaving the Thierville road opposite._
_The road goes round the Heights of Vacherauville and Marre Forts, then
enters the almost entirely ruined village of_ =Marre= (_about three miles
from Charny_). _Turn to the left at the first houses, pass in front of
the_ ruined church, _then turn to the right, leaving the Bourrus Woods
road opposite_. _Follow the railway._
[Illustration: MARRE. G.C. 38 FROM CHARNY. RUINS OF CHURCH ON THE
RIGHT]
[Illustration: PANORAMIC VIEW OF ESNES AND HILL 304. THE SIDES OF THE
HILL ARE FULL OF SHELTERS, ESPECIALLY ALONG G.C. 18]
_Two kilometres beyond Marre, before Chattancourt Station, G.C. 38 turns
to the left (leaving the Cumières road opposite), then, 1 km. from the
fork in the road, reaches_ =Chattancourt= (completely ruined) _at the foot
of Mort-Homme_ (_photo below_).
[Illustration: ALL THAT IS LEFT OF CHATTANCOURT. IN THE BACKGROUND:
MORT-HOMME]
_On leaving the village, G.C. 38 turns to the left and climbs the side
of_ =Hill 275=, _from the top of which there is_ a fine view of Mort-Homme
Hill and Hill 304; _a little to the left_, Montzéville village, situated
in a hollow, and, behind, the Valley of the Meuse, Poivre Hill, Talou
Hill and Samogneux, are also visible.
[Illustration: ESNES CHURCH, HILL 304 (LEFT) and G.C. 38 (BEHIND THE
CHURCH)]
_The road next descends; at the sides are_ numerous military works and
French graves. _2 km. 200 beyond Chattancourt there is a crossroad: the
Montzéville road lies ahead, while G.C. 38, turning to the right, climbs
a crest from which there is_ a view of Esnes and Hill 304. =Esnes= (_4 km.
200 from Chattancourt_), partly ruined, _is reached_: Panorama of Hill
304 (_photo, pp._ 34-35).
[Illustration: WAYSIDE CROSS OF ESNES ON HILL 304. AVOCOURT ROAD (LEFT)
AND MALANCOURT ROAD (RIGHT)]
_G.C. 38 passes in front of the church (photo, p. 35) and then rises
towards_ Hill 304. _1 km. from Esnes, near a wayside cross_ (photo
above), _is a fork_; _take the road on the right (G.C. 18) to the top
of_ =Hill 304.= _On the right there is a fine view of_ the Valley of the
Meuse.
_The road crosses the old front lines, then zigzags down to_ =Malancourt=
(_5 km. from Esnes_). _At the entrance to the village, on the right of
the road, is a_ concrete blockhouse (_photo below_).
[Illustration: GERMAN BLOCKHOUSE, WITH MACHINE-GUNS, AT ENTRANCE TO
MALANCOURT]
=Malancourt= was completely devastated. _Pass in front of the ruins_ of
the church, quite near to which there is another blockhouse. _Keep
along_
[Illustration: CUISY-SUR-MEUSE. AMERICAN SOLDIERS IN FRONT OF RUINED
CHURCH
_The road on the left leads to Gercourt; that on the right to
Béthincourt._]
_G.C. 18, leaving on the left, in the village, the Avocourt road._.
_Climb_ Hill 251, _from the top of which_ Montfaucon Ridge _is seen_.
_3 km. 400 beyond Malancourt (and 1 km. before Montfaucon) the road
joins G.C. 19, which take to the right in the direction of Consenvoye._
_One kilometer further on, at the fork, keep along G.C. 19, which turns
to the left (the Cuisy road, straight ahead, is impassable). On the
right, in a tiny valley, is seen the village of_ =Cuisy=, completely
ruined. _1 km. 200 further on, to the right, there is a road leading to
Cuisy. G.C. 19, after rejoining the Septsarges road, reaches_ =Gercourt=,
_5 km. beyond Cuisy_.
Several concrete German defence-works are to be seen in Gercourt, while
the ruins of the houses and church present a terrible scene of
desolation (_photo below_). Opposite the church stands a house lined
with concrete, in which the Germans had installed a telephone exchange.
Cuisy and Gercourt were within the German front lines from 1914, and
were only retaken in 1918 during the American offensive of September 26.
[Illustration: RUINS OF GERCOURT CHURCH
_On the right: G.C. 19, leading to Consenvoye._]
[Illustration: DESTROYED GERMAN GUNS ON _G.C._ 19, BETWEEN GERCOURT AND
CONSENVOYE]
_The road turns to the right near the church. After leaving the village,
it passes 500 yards to the left of_ Forges Wood, in which German
batteries were posted. Large calibre guns destroyed by French artillery
are still to be seen on the road, 1 km. _from Gercourt_ (_photo above_).
_On rejoining the road from Dannevoux (I.C. 23) turn to the right and
follow the railway as far as_ =Consenvoye= (_1 km. 800 from Gercourt_),
_which is reached after crossing the Meuse and the canal_.
Consenvoye, on the left bank of the Meuse, was connected with the right
bank by a fine bridge, which the French blew up after the retreat from
Charleroi. After the victory of the Marne, all efforts to dislodge the
Germans from the village were unavailing, and until the German offensive
of February 21, 1916, Consenvoye marked the limit of the advance on both
sides. It was over this bridge that supplies were brought up for the
sector on the left bank of the Meuse during the 1916 offensive. The
village was retaken in the course of a brilliant combined action by the
French and Americans during the offensive of October 7, 1918.
[Illustration: SIVRY-SUR-MEUSE
_The Church and N. 64._]
[Illustration: AMERICAN MONUMENT COMMEMORATING THE CROSSING OF THE MEUSE
ON NOV. 1, 1918 (_On I.C. 49, 3 km. from Vilosnes._)]
Consenvoye suffered less than the other villages previously mentioned.
Around the church, which was not severely damaged, are some soldiers’
graves.
_Keep along past the church as far as N. 64, into which turn to the
left. Follow the valley of the Meuse to_ =Sivry= (_4 km. from
Consenvoye_).
_N. 64 crosses the_ partly destroyed village, _then runs alongside the
canal and the Meuse to a fork in the road, 2 km. 500 from Sivry_. _Here
leave N. 64_
[Illustration: BRIEULLES-SUR-BAR, NOV. 4, 1918
_117th American Engineers_ (_42nd Inf. Div._)
_Arrival of the Field Kitchen._]
_and take the Vilosnes road on the left, which continues alongside the
Meuse. Part of_ =Vilosnes= (_3 km. 500 from Sivry_) was destroyed, but the
church, _which stands on a height_, was not seriously damaged.
[Illustration: PANORAMIC VIEW OF DUN-SUR-MEUSE (LOWER TOWN) AND THE
DOULCON--CLÉRY-LE-PETIT DISTRICT, AS SEEN FROM THE TERRACE