Memorial

[anteros_lmc]

I've finally managed to get a 1914 edition of Edward Fraser's Napoleon the Gaoler which is one of the first histories to summarise the experiences of British prisoners during the Napoleonic Wars, and to present their own accounts of their captivity. Writing of the feared penal depot of Bitche, Fraser adds a little detail that I have never come across before:

According to an English visitor to Bitche a few years ago - the fortress, it may be mentioned, is now in German posession, being within the Alsatian territory ceded at the close of the Franco-German war of 1870 - the names, with ships and regiments, of many of the British prisoners are still to be seen, deeply cut or scored on the outer stone walls of the barracks, more than one name belonging to well-known English, Scottish or Irish families.

The fortress of Bitche survived the two great wars if the 20th century and it still stands, much as it has always done, on its impregnable rock at the foot of the Vosges. I have no idea how many of the buldings of the early 19th century are still extant, but I believe many are still there. I wonder if the names of those sailors and their ships are still carved on the walls?



Citadel of Bitche

Comments

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

It always moved me that people feel compelled to write 'I was here.' Seems to me that that is what graffiti boils down into.

I am feeling the rabbity kick of a plot-bunny...

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

It always moved me that people feel compelled to write 'I was here.'
I know, it seems to be a basic human need that never changes doesn't it? I would love to go to Bitche and see if the sailor's inscriptions are still there. Have you read about the amazing Viking graffiti in the Neolithic tomb of Maeshow in Orkney? It's touching and crude and funny and even after 900 years, so easy to identify with.

I am feeling the rabbity kick of a plot-bunny...
Yay! Thump thump thump thump...

Btw, did you get the podfic I sent you last night? I couldn't open the .aup file you sent :( I'd need the data folder to open it, or alternatively an mp3 file. Hope the one I sent came through though.

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

I did get your podcast. Have not had a quiet moment to listen though. (Weekend--everyone home.)

Also, I need to fix and resend mine so you can actually hear it. I need son to help me. But he is kind of all over today. He wants to run back out to OWS. I don't know if I can snag him before that. Weekdays are easier-- less people in the house.

The photo of the Biche is astonishing. I had no idea it was so huge! A person would have to be icy brave to try and escape from such a place...

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

That's okay, as long as you got it, I was a bit worried it might have gone astray. I know what weekends are like :)

I need to fix and resend mine so you can actually hear it.
No hurry, I suspect I may have to disappear again, if not tomorrow, then soon :/

Bitche is astonishing isn't it? It's vast! And when you think that the souterrains were cut into that huge rock.... No wonder it was known as the "Mansion of Tears". And now it has its own website!

Hope your cold is getting better, or at least isn't being too horrible.

[nodbear.livejournal.com]

those rabbity kicks are alays good :)

fantastsic aerial view of Bitche = thank you anteros

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

It's an amazing view isn't it? It's hard to imagine that anyone could escape from such a place. I would love to visit it one day.

[nodbear.livejournal.com]

Another place to put on the fangirl pilgrimage wish list :)

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

It's a growing list isn't it? I wonder how many we'll get to? As you've often said, "Never say never!"

[stevie-carroll.livejournal.com]

That photo is amazing. I'd love to visit.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

(Catching up with comments here...)

It's an incredible place. And I can highly recommend reading some of the accounts of the young midshipmen who, unbelievable, managed to escape from this fortress.

[aletheiafelinea.livejournal.com]

When reading about incunables or generally old books, this thought often hits me and make me smile: time magically changes scribbled margins, stains and every sort of "you vandalized this book, you barbarian!!!" into the best and most interesting of artifacts.

I love aerial photos! This one is beautiful.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Lol! Yes, a very good point.

I love aerial photos! This one is beautiful.
It's quite stunning isn't it? Though chilling too. The British navel prisoners held here from 1803 - 1814 referred to Bitche as the "Mansion of Tears".

[joyful-molly.livejournal.com]

I wonder if the names of those sailors and their ships are still carved on the walls?

*checks map* Hm. That's not too far away from me, a little under three hours by train and two hours by car. Looks like a trip for next summer!

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Really?? Do you think you could really get to Bitche? I would be in your debt if you could go and look for any remnant of or memorial to the British seamen who were held there. I find the accounts of these young men so very moving.

[joyful-molly.livejournal.com]

should be doable. perfect trip for a spring saturday, and i can practicise my french. if the barracks are still there, i'll take notes and pictures.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

That would be wonderful!! Most of the British seamen were held in the souterrains dug into the rock, with the lowest cells reserved for the most persistent escapers. They were allowed up into the yard between the barracks once or twice a day for exercise and referred to this as "going on deck"!