Riqueval Tunnel and Bridge
During the reign of Napoleon I, on the Cambrai-Chauny canal, hundreds of prisoners of war took 8 years to dig a 6km tunnel. This was a huge project which enabled them to avoid having to build several locks. There is no ventilation in the tunnel, so a winch boat, called the ‘Toueur’, pulls barges through because they cannot use their engines.
During the First World War the Germans turned this underground canal into a veritable barracks, with dressing stations dug out along the banks. The men slept in barges. In late September 1918 recapturing the tunnel was one of the highlights of the Battle for the Hindenburg line. The attack was launched on 29th September 1918. Americans recaptured the tunnel and Australians recaptured Riqueval bridge, the only one still standing across the canal. It had great strategic value as tanks were able to cross the canal quickly and continue their offensive towards Montbrehain.
In the surrounding area, the village of Bellicourt was the scene of very fierce fighting, to which several monuments pay tribute: a memorial in honour of the 2nd Corps of the American Army and an obelisk in memory of the 30th Division. On the D31 road near Bellenglise another obelisk was erected in honour of the 4th Australian Division.
Things to see
-
Louvre-Lens Museum
-
Visit the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Reims
-
Disneyland® Paris
-
Paris: Sacré-Coeur Basilica
-
The Moulin Rouge, Largest Cabaret in the World
-
The Louvre Museum
-
The Centre Pompidou
-
The Arc de Triomphe, Honoring the Grande Armée in Paris
-
Go Wild at the Paris Zoological Park (Zoo de Vincennes)
-
Grand Palais National Galleries
-
Visit the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral
-
The Orsay, from a Train Station to a Museum
-
Visit the Fondation Louis Vuitton
-
The Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac in Paris
-
The Eiffel Tower
Calendar
Point of interest
-
Rendez-vous in Somme American Cemetery
-
Discover Somme American Cemetery
-
Rendez-vous in Saint-Quentin, an occupied town
-
Rendez-vous at the Museum of the Great War
-
Rendez-vous à "Souvenir Français" Chapel of Remembrance
-
Rendez-vous at Town Centre of Cambrai
-
Rendez-vous at Louverval Military Cemetery and Cambrai Memorial - Doignies
-
Rendez-vous at South African National Memorial and Museum
-
Rendez-vous at Bullecourt Australian Memorial Park
-
Rendez-vous au Little Train of the Upper Somme
-
Rendez-vous sur battlefields sites of Pozières
-
Rendez-vous au Lochnagar Crater
-
Rendez-vous at the Ulster Tower
-
Rendez-vous at the Franco-British Memorial
-
Rendez-vous au Somme 1916 Museum