This is my last post about the Battlefields trip that I went on back in February. After a few days in Ypres, Flanders Fields and the Somme we finished off the trip by driving to Compiegne in France. Compared to the rest of the trip which hugged the country’s northern borders, Compiegne is just a short drive from Paris.
It was built at the location where the Germans signed the Armistice of 11 November 1918 that ended World War I. During World War II, Hitler chose the same spot for the French and Germans to sign the Armistice of 22 June 1940 after Germany won the Battle of France. The site was destroyed by the Germans but rebuilt by the French after the war.
Today, the Glade of the Armistice contains a statue of World War I French military leader and Allied supreme commander Marshal Ferdinand Foch, and the reconstructed Alsace-Lorraine Memorial, depicting a German Eagle impaled by a sword.
The original carriage the Foch signed the treaty in was destroyed by the Nazis but it was reconstructed and is a centre-piece in the museum. Visiting the museum was actually one of the highlights of the trip for me. I loved standing on a site that I had read so much about, and saw such a historic artifact (the carriage). The glade around the museum witnessed the change in the destiny of the 20th century and it was incredible to get to stand there.
The museum is located at Route de Soissons, 60200 Compiègne, France. Museum hours are usually 10-6pm. Admission price is €7.
Have you ever visited the Armistice Museum before?
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:
The Somme
Ypres and Menin Gate
DDR Museum (Berlin, Germany)
East Side Art Gallery (Berlin, Germany)
Berlin
Bratislava City Museum (Slovakia)
Bazylika Mariacka (Gdansk, Poland)
The Spanish Synagogue (Prague, Czech Republic)
Hastings Castle (UK)
Battle (UK)
Battle Abbey (UK)
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