'NEATH VERDUN
HEROIC FRENCH DEFENCE VISIT OF AMERICANS CONSECRATION OF MEMORIAL By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright LONDON, Wednesday. The Paris correspondent of “The Times” reports that General Pershing and 800 members of the American Legion visited Verdun.
They were received by the Prime Minister, M. Poincare, and Marshal
Petain. The Americans attended the ceremony of the consecration of a belltower at the ossuary in the Verdun cemetery by the Bishop of Verdun. Speaking at a banquet held later M. Poincare said the heroic resistance at Verdun gave the Allies time to prepare their offensive. It proved to the world the firmness of France and her determination to conquer. It enabled America, when she entered the war, to feel confident of the energy and tenacity of the French. * The Prime Minister recalled the fact that American troops in September, 1918, took part in the final offensive which cleared out the Germans from the Verdun region. The Legionaries, accompanied by 800 French soldiers, marched to the graves of seven unknown soldiers from whose company the Unknown Warrior who was buried in Paris was selected. The veterans of the Verdun fighting were reviewed and presented with special medals. -THEY SHALL NOT PASS” In the cemetery there are buried 250,000 men who died to uphold the famous challenge: "They shall not pass.” Marshal Foch was present at the ceremony. In the throng of spectators the glittering vestments of the Church contrasted with the military uniforms of French veterans. *vl. Poincare spoke of how. in September, 1916, in one of the underground chambers of the Verdun citadel, he and others had tried to estimate the results of the defence of the position. They had found these results gave an advantage on the Allied and other fronts beyond all calculations. On the first night on which the memorial ossuary was open Marshal Pe:ain took his place throughout the night among the guard mounted over the bones of the unknown dead.—A. and ,
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Bibliographic details
Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 157, 23 September 1927, Page 1
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323'NEATH VERDUN Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 157, 23 September 1927, Page 1
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