Centre Mondial de la Paix

Lorraine


Set in Verdun’s handsomely classical former bishop’s palace, built in 1724, this museum’s permanent exhibition touches upon wars, their causes and solutions; human rights; and the fragility of peace.


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1. Cathédrale Notre Dame

0.06 MILES

Perched on a hillside, this Romanesque-meets-Gothic cathedral shelters a gilded Baroque baldachin, restored after WWI damage. Much of the stained glass is…

2. Monument à la Victoire

0.2 MILES

Steep steps lead up to this austere 1920s monument commemorating war victims and survivors. The crypt hides a book listing the soldiers who fought in the…

3. Citadelle Souterraine

0.22 MILES

Comprising 7km of underground galleries, this cavernous subterranean citadel was designed by military engineer Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban in the 17th…

4. Porte Chaussée

0.32 MILES

Once part of Verdun's original city ramparts, this 14th-century gate was later used as a prison from 1755 to 1860.

5. Porte St-Paul

0.41 MILES

Built in 1877, this city gate is adorned with a marble plaque recalling the ‘victorious peace’ that inspired a ‘cry of joy’.

6. Mémorial de Verdun

3.43 MILES

The village of Fleury, wiped off the face of the earth in the course of being captured and recaptured 16 times, is now the site of this memorial. It tells…

7. Ossuaire de Douaumont

3.9 MILES

Rising like a gigantic artillery shell above 15,000 crosses that bleed into the distance, this sombre, 137m-long ossuary, inaugurated in 1932, is one of…

8. Tranchée des Baïonnettes

4.74 MILES

On 12 June 1916, two companies of the 137th Infantry Regiment of the French army were sheltered in their tranchées (trenches), baïonnettes (bayonets)…