After leaving the abbey we begin to follow the Meuse River. Little do I know that it is one of the major rivers in Europe with a lenght of 925 km, begining in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea. We can also see that is navigalbe as we begin noticing numerous boats preparing themselves to enter the locks. It must be a calm and relaxing holiday traveling on the river.
Later on we come upon a road with a number of signs saying that you are now traveling on the «Voie Sacrée» or the «Sacred Way». We did not know what it meant until we began seeing signs marking the way to Verdun including a number of German, English and American. It most likely had to do with World War I. Indeed after researching on internet we were not surprised to find out the sad, but interesting facts about the history of this road. My text research as well as only picture comes from the help of Wikipedia.
This 72 km stretch of road between Bar-le-Duc and Verdun played a vital road in the Battle of Verdun during World War I, which was exactly the road we were following. Day and night there were about 3'500 trucks on the move, carrying men, ammunition and supplies to the beleauguered city. As the road was extensively used as one of the last supply routes to Verdun they had it widened to 9 meters to allow to trucks to pass side by side. Between February 21st to March 6th 23,000 tons of ammunition, 2,500 tons of other material and 190,000 men used the Sacred Way. All soldiers who were also marching on the same road were forced to stay to the sides due to lack of space. A truck passed every 14 seconds, putting the road to considerable wear and tear. Over the lapse of 10 months, 8,500 men from 16 labour battalions worked to keep the road in good shape and order!
The special unit responsible for controlling traffic and servicing the vehicles numbered 300 officers and 8,500 men. There were 30 breakdown trucks always on the road and repair crews stationed beside it. A broken down vehicle was immediately moved to the roadside so as not to interrupt the flow of supplies. Automobile repair shops at Bar-le-Duc and Troyes worked ceaselessly as did hydraulic presses turning out solid rubber tyres. Alongside the road ran a narrow-gauge single track railway, Le Chemin de Fer Meusien. This was able to move about 1,800 tons of supplies a day. It carried the bulk of the food for the army at Verdun - some 16,600 officers and 420,000 men, not to mention 136,000 horses - and brought back many wounded from the front.
The «Voie Sacrée» still exists today but has been paved over and is now an active secondary road. In 2006 the road was renumbered RD 1916, being a reference to the route's militarily most critical year.
So there you go for the historical part of the trip. On the way we stop in for a drink in the old city of Bar-le-Duc. We are suprised to find that many of the old houses once belonging to rich aristocrats were being renovated one by one. Due to the additional link via TGV (the fast train) the city should soon be restored to its former glory. Above you can see a picture of the old town.
Now it is already 6 pm and really time to take the closest highway again if we still want to reach Geneva tonight!
Later on we come upon a road with a number of signs saying that you are now traveling on the «Voie Sacrée» or the «Sacred Way». We did not know what it meant until we began seeing signs marking the way to Verdun including a number of German, English and American. It most likely had to do with World War I. Indeed after researching on internet we were not surprised to find out the sad, but interesting facts about the history of this road. My text research as well as only picture comes from the help of Wikipedia.
This 72 km stretch of road between Bar-le-Duc and Verdun played a vital road in the Battle of Verdun during World War I, which was exactly the road we were following. Day and night there were about 3'500 trucks on the move, carrying men, ammunition and supplies to the beleauguered city. As the road was extensively used as one of the last supply routes to Verdun they had it widened to 9 meters to allow to trucks to pass side by side. Between February 21st to March 6th 23,000 tons of ammunition, 2,500 tons of other material and 190,000 men used the Sacred Way. All soldiers who were also marching on the same road were forced to stay to the sides due to lack of space. A truck passed every 14 seconds, putting the road to considerable wear and tear. Over the lapse of 10 months, 8,500 men from 16 labour battalions worked to keep the road in good shape and order!
The special unit responsible for controlling traffic and servicing the vehicles numbered 300 officers and 8,500 men. There were 30 breakdown trucks always on the road and repair crews stationed beside it. A broken down vehicle was immediately moved to the roadside so as not to interrupt the flow of supplies. Automobile repair shops at Bar-le-Duc and Troyes worked ceaselessly as did hydraulic presses turning out solid rubber tyres. Alongside the road ran a narrow-gauge single track railway, Le Chemin de Fer Meusien. This was able to move about 1,800 tons of supplies a day. It carried the bulk of the food for the army at Verdun - some 16,600 officers and 420,000 men, not to mention 136,000 horses - and brought back many wounded from the front.
The «Voie Sacrée» still exists today but has been paved over and is now an active secondary road. In 2006 the road was renumbered RD 1916, being a reference to the route's militarily most critical year.
So there you go for the historical part of the trip. On the way we stop in for a drink in the old city of Bar-le-Duc. We are suprised to find that many of the old houses once belonging to rich aristocrats were being renovated one by one. Due to the additional link via TGV (the fast train) the city should soon be restored to its former glory. Above you can see a picture of the old town.
Now it is already 6 pm and really time to take the closest highway again if we still want to reach Geneva tonight!
