Somme < Picardy < France
The Historial, Museum of the Great War
An exceptional museum located in the heart of the battlefields of the Somme in Peronne.
The Historial, an internationally and culturally outstanding museum of the First World War.
It explains the conflict, its origins and the consequences by comparing the main countries who fought on the Western Front: Great Britain, France and Germany. The Historial boasts a unique collection which shows both the soldiers’ experience and that of the civilians. This modern trilingual museum (English, French, German) is neither a memorial nor a military museum, but a museum of understanding. On the actual sites of the battles of the Somme in 1916 and in Picardy in 1918, the Historial of the Great War aims to offer the key to understanding these events in every dimension. This enables the museum to reflect upon the consequences of the conflict and the material traces which still remain.
Not to be missed during the visit is a 30 mn documentary film devoted to the Battle of the Somme (July - November 1916)
Information and Customer Service
3 22831418 • group@historial.org • www.historial.org
Historial de la Grande Guerre
Château de Péronne - BP 20063
F. 80201 Péronne cedex
Tél. +33 (0)3 22 831418
Fax. +33 (0)3 22 835418
Open daily, 10.00 am - 6.00 pm
Average length of visit: 1.30 hours.
Rates
• Student &school groups: € 3, 20 per person.
The price includes a short presentation of the museum.
• For special requests such as guided visits of the museum, please contact the
Also at the Historial:
Educational Outreach Department
The Educational Outreach Department is composed of a multidisciplinary team of four teachers, (high school teachers in literature, fine arts, German, English, history and geography, as well as primary school teachers). It offers an introduction to the Historial through educational tools, different approaches and teacher training.
Contact the Historial educational department
T. +33 (0)3 22835414 • educ@historial.org • www.historial.org
Thiepval Memorial & the Visitor centre
The imposing monument of brick and stone stands 45m high and is visible for several miles in every direction.
The Memorial to the missing of the Somme is a focal point for most British visitors and school groups.
Each year, over 165000 visitors will visit this impressive site.
The Memorial to the Missing
In 1932 the Imperial War Graves Commission completed the great Somme Memorial. This imposing monument commemorates more than 72,000 British and South African men who fell on the Somme between July 1915 and March 1918 and who have no known grave.
The Visitor centre
Run by the Historial, Museum of the Great War in Peronne, the discreetly positioned Visitor Centre offers full facilities for the thousands of visitors to the Memorial: the centre features a superb exhibition which enables visitors to understand the reason for the Memorial and what happened here during the First World War. Three short films are shown in the centre’s audiovisual theatre; The Somme in
the GreatWar, Memory (reconstruction and Remembrance) and Thiepval.
@historial.org • www.historial.org
Thiepval Visitor centre
8, rue de l’Ancre
F. 80300 Thiepval
Open everyday
• 10 am to 6 pm from March 1 to October 31
• 9 am to 5 pm from November 1 to February
28
• Annual closing: two weeks between
Christmas and New Year
Admission free
The Visitor centre provides services such as:
car and coach parking, toilets, a souvenir
and bookshop, vending machines…
Contact the Visitor centre of Thiepval
T. +33 (0)3 22746047 • thiepval@historial.org • www.historial.org