Battlefields -- France -- Guidebooks; France -- Guidebooks; Marne, 1st Battle of the, France, 1914
_Turn to the right in front of the church and take the Rue du
Palais-de-Justice which leads to the Place Beaurepaire_, on which is
the statue to the hero of Verdun of 1792. (Major de Beaurepaire killed
himself rather than sign the capitulation of the town decided upon by
the communal council.)
=FROM COULOMMIERS TO PROVINS= (44 km.)
_Leave Coulommiers by the Avenue de Rebais skirting the new church, and
passing it on the right. Cross a little bridge after about 2 km., and
1,500 yards further on take the road on the right (G. C. 66), which
follows the Morin in the direction of La Ferté-Gaucher._
This part of the river was crossed by the Franco-British forces
only on September 7, the British crossing at Coulommiers and in the
neighbourhood, the 2nd French Cavalry Corps at La Ferté-Gaucher.
_Pass through =Chauffry= (8 km.) then =Jouy-sur-Morin= (17 km.). Turn
to the right in the latter village, and leaving the church on the left,
cross the Morin before turning to the left. Here the road passes over
the railway, then skirts it to rejoin N. 34, in which turn to the left
(19 km.) in order to descend towards =La Ferté-Gaucher=. At 400 yards
from this crossing, turn to the right into D. 4 in the direction of
Courtacon and Provins (a line of telegraph-poles breaks off from N.
34 to follow D. 4). The road ascends and gives a pretty view of La
Ferté-Gaucher shown in the photograph below._
An anecdote relating to the passage of the Grand Morin has been
recalled by Professor Delbet, whose mother's estate contains a bridge
over that river. A German general obliged Mme. Delbet, aged 77 years,
to be present at the passage of the troops over the bridge, a spectacle
which lasted seven hours. "Madame," said he, "when you become German,
for German you are going to be, you will feel very proud to have seen
my army pass through your gates. I have, besides, the intention to
order a handsome memorial tablet to be fixed here mentioning this
fact." As Mme. Delbet protested at the idea of becoming German, he
continued: "The French race is degenerate and worn out. As you belong
to a family of doctors, you must know that this is a fact. The French
are done for. I may as well tell you what we mean to do. We shall keep
the finest men and marry them to solid German girls; in this way, they
may be able to have healthy children. As for the other survivors, we
shall ship them off to America."
A few days after, Mme. Delbet had the pleasure of seeing the German
troops re-crossing the river in haste, pursued by French cavalry.
At the "Château de la Masure," at 3½ km. south of La Ferté-Gaucher,
much more tragic events took place, as the Enquiry Commission has
established. The occupants were M. Quenescourt, late mayor of Sézanne,
aged 77 years, with an old servant, and a lady from a neighbouring
hamlet who had come to seek refuge.
[Illustration: LA FERTÉ-GAUCHER SEEN FROM THE PROVINS ROAD]
[Illustration: BURNT HOUSES]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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