E. of Samogneux and dominating the road from Vacherauville to Beaumont rises =Hill 344=, which, together with Samogneux and Beaumont, fell into the hands of the enemy in 1916. It was retaken during the French offensive of August 20th, 1917, by regiments belonging to the 123rd and 126th D.I. These were almost immediately relieved by the 14th D.I., which for three weeks withstood violent enemy counter-attacks without flinching. On September 9th, in particular, it repulsed an attack by several German divisions which had orders to retake Hill 344 at all costs. [Illustration: SAMOGNEUX CHURCH IN AUG., 1915.] _Return to Bras by the same road._ VII.—From Bras to Verdun _From Bras take N 64 towards_ =Verdun=. _The road winds across the western slopes of_ =Belleville Fort=. _At the top of the hill, take the road on the left (leaving the down-hill road to Verdun)._ _The road (IC 2) passes by_ =Belleville Fort= _and along the top of the hill, which formed the last permanent line of resistance, from, N.E. of Verdun to_ =St. Michel Fort=. _From_ =St. Michel Fort= _there is a fine run down_ =St. Michel Hill= _to Verdun which enter by the_ =Rue d’Elain= _and_ =Chaussée Gate=. [Illustration: Hill 275 Chattancourt-Esnes Road Hill 304 Chattancourt Village Mort-Homme Champ Village Oie Hill Cumières Hill Montfaucon] [Illustration: Forges Wood End of Oie Hill River Meuse Heights of Sivry-on-the-Meuse Consonvoye Brabant Verdun—Consonvoye Road Samogneux PANORAMIC VIEW OF THE MEUSE VALLEY SEEN FROM THE TOP OF TALOU HILL.] (_Consider the four parts from left to right, across both pages; the top half fits on to the left of the bottom half._) [Illustration: From this spot on the road from Vacherauville to Champneuville (see outline map, p. 87), there is a general view of the lines from which the German Offensive started, and of the battlefield on the left bank of the river.] [Illustration] 2nd ITINERARY: THE LEFT BANK OF THE MEUSE including Cumières, Oie Hill, Mort-Homme, Montfaucon, Hill 304, and Avocourt (_see description, pp. 90–111_) [Illustration] [Illustration: THE CHURCH AND MAIN STREET OF CHARNY IN JANUARY, 1916] I.—From Verdun to Charny _Leave Verdun by the Porte de France; after the railway bridge go straight along_ G. C. 38 _(see plan between pp. 30–31.) Cross the Faubourg de Jardin-Fontaine, then Thierville village. Facing it is_ MARRE FORT. _At the foot of the hill on which the fort stands, turn to the right. Leaving on the left the ruined_ farm of Willers-les-Moines, _the road climbs up the small_ Hill 243, _below which is the_ strongly fortified =Charny Redoubt=.