The bodies of more than 100 soldiers, primarily from the Baden Reserve Infantry Regiment 111, are not to be recovered from a tunnel in France where they were buried during World War I. After several test drillings, the Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge (German War Graves Commission) and its French partners found “that salvaging the war dead lying in the Winterberg tunnel would only be possible with a great deal of effort,” quoted the “Südkurier” (Saturday) from a letter from the Foreign Office to the CDU Member of the Bundestag Andreas Jung. The spot should now be marked with a memorial stone.
On May 4, 1917, the French fired heavy artillery at the entrance to the Winterberg Tunnel near Craonne on the Chemin des Dames in northern France. The main entrance was buried, the soldiers died in the tunnel. Only recently has it been known exactly where this is located.
According to the newspaper report, the “Winterberg Tunnel War Cemetery” is to be built in the forest, which will involve the Foreign Office financially. Work is scheduled to begin at the turn of the year 2023/24, with the opening scheduled for August 2024.
The Karlsruhe General State Archive dedicated an exhibition to the event this year, which was then to be shown at several locations in Germany, France and Belgium. According to the information, it is designed primarily for schoolchildren.
information about the show
