Tranchée de Calonne

“The Calonne Crossroads” is the scene of some significant events. The 106th RI arrives there on 22 September 1914, and Maurice Genevoix narrowly escapes death during a shootout near here, on 24 September 1914. A bullet hits a button on his belt buckle! During this day, the German troops try to take over this part of Les Hauts de Meuse, in vain. The long list of injured Frenchmen described by Maurice Genevoix shows that this success came at a high price.
Until April 1915, the regiment often visits the crossroads. Men are posted there in reserve, between the line of fire at Les Eparges and rest time in the villages of the Meuse Valley. They stay in the trenches, which are sheltered and covered with logs.
25 April 1915: Maurice Genevoix is seriously injured near the crossroads, during an intervention by the 106th RI to stop the Germans, who have managed to break through a French front line. 7 months of treatment ensue.
After being discharged, Maurice Genevoix goes on to write Ceux de 14. As well as giving an account of his experience as a soldier, he also expresses his wish to ensure the soldiers who fought in the first months of the war are not forgotten.
“ - Get down! There’s a gap! They can see us!”
Too late: I fell on one knee onto hard, dry ground, and something hit my arm. (…) I saw my arm shudder under the impact of a second bullet (…) and before my very eyes, a strip of fabric flew up, under the muffled impact of a third bullet.” (Quote from the book by Maurice Genevoix, Ceux de 14, Editions Flammarion)