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Pfifferdaj (Feast of the Ribeauvillé minstrels), transhumance of the cows, farm-inns & Munster cheeses, harvest & new wine, animal parks, Halloween, sites of the 1914-1918 WW1…

From the end of summer to the heart of autumn (from September to mid-November) in Riquewihr and on the Alsace wine route, it is undoubtedly the most flamboyant season of the year.

The Pfifferdaj, the incredible festival of the ribeauvillé minstrels (4 kilometres from Riquewihr), is the flagship event of the season. For more than 600 years, it has taken place on the first weekend of September, this year, August 31 and September 1, 2024!

And until mid-November, you will be spoilt for choice for experiences and discoveries not to be missed. Until the end of October, hiking in the mountains and lunch on an inn farm, Munster cheeses and transhumance of the cows are on the program.
Similarly, the harvest and tasting of new wine. Until the end of the All Saints’ Day holidays, the animal parks (Naturopark, Butterfly Garden, Eagle Park, Monkey Mountain) will delight young and old.
Do not forget a day in the Alsace living museum. Hikes in the vineyards and forests of golden foliage are spectacular (end of October, early November).
Finally, the memory sites of the Hartmannswillerkopf and Linge (WW1 1914-1918) welcome visitors until November 11, 2024.

Table of contents of my page…

My page is for all travellers who want to discover Alsace outside the hustle and bustle of the summer holidays and the Christmas market period, and in particular for our visitors who stay in one of our “AirBnB” style holiday accommodations, at the Remparts de Riquewihr.

My suggestions are in chronological order, from the end of the summer to mid-November.

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Jean-Paul Krebs
Blogger, photographer & traveller,
Owner of Rosa Gallica, holiday rentals for demanding travellers.
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In the Ribeauvillé & Riquewihr area, the Pfifferdaj 2024, the festival of the Minstrels of Ribeauvillé, opens the flamboyant autumn season.

The festival of the Minstrels, with more than 600 years of age, is the oldest festival in Alsace.

Here are some videos to get you in the mood!

The lord of Ribeaupierre, king of the Minstrels. More than 6 centuries of history in Ribeauvillé!

In the Middle Ages, storytellers, entertainers, jugglers, singers, histrions, toured Alsace from city to city, from castle to castle, to show their talent. A local legend says that on a St. John’s Day (in the past an event was located not by the date but by the saint of the day), a poor man lamented on the side of the road when the Sire de Ribeaupierre came… The lord asked why these people were so sad. He was told that the man had broken his fife, his only livelihood. Magnanimous, the Sire de Ribeaupierre thres him a purse full of gold. “I don’t like people crying on my land,” he told him. Buy another fife and come see me up there one day. You will make youth dance! “.

A few days later, according to legend, an important procession was on its way to the castle: drums, trumpet blowers, beast showers… One of the minnows came forward carrying a golden fife and a crown and, to thank the Sire for his great generosity, sacred him King of the Minstrels.

From this day, every year, the minstrels give an aubade to the one whose vassals they were (the Pfifferdaj) and carry a crown to Our Lady of Dusenbach, their patron (the pilgrimage of the following Sunday).

In reality, the lord of Ribeaupierre was a clever politician. He knew that travelling musicians were poeding good and bad news. It was better to have them with you than against you 😉

The Pfifferdaj of Ribeauvillé, an incredible party!

I show you here one of the floats of the Pfifferdaj 2023 that features the Great Dragon, a mythical animal that, according to legend, lives in the Taennchel mountain range overlooking Ribeauvillé. That’s impressive!

Here is how the organisers present the event: “Every year, this authentic festival, a great popular encounter with the Middle Ages, takes place every first Sunday in September. The minstrels descended from the baladins of the Middle Ages, players of fifes or drums from the Rhine Country, accompany the procession composed of horsemen and floats and revive for thousands of spectators massed in the old town, at the foot of the castles, the scenes interpreted by local associations. The ingenuity of float builders and seamstresses, the game of nearly 1,500 actors enchant for two hours the spectators of this colourful mediaeval fresco”.

Pfifferdaj, festival of the minstrels in Ribeauvillé – Dates & program 2024

Saturday, August 31, 2024

  • 10:00 to 21:00 o’clock: Medieval Market in the courtyard of the Media Library.
  • 11:00 a.m. to 6 p.m.: Street animation by the Dancerie des Ribeaupierre and the “Skadefryd” Group
  • From 7:00 p.m.: Ball and catering at the Tent of the Jardin de Ville.
  • 8:30 p.m.: TORCH RETREAT – Departure from Place de la République towards the Jardin de Ville, at the lower end of the city.
  • In the evening: Wandering of brass bands in the Grand’rue.

Sunday, September 1, 2024

  • 9:00 a.m.: Awakening by the minstrels of the VOGESIA Municipal Harmony at the Butchers Tower.
  • 10:00 a.m.: Musical animations in the Grand’rue and on all squares until the start of the procession.
  • 10:00 to 19:00: Medieval Market in the courtyard of the Media Library – musical animation of the group “Skadefryd” from 10 am to 12 pm.
  • 14:30: GREAT HISTORICAL PARADE – Departure Place de la République (Upper City). After the procession: Free wine at the fountain & musical aubade – Place de l’Hôtel de Ville.

Good to know: the ranking of the floats will no longer be revealed at the end of the parade, it will only be announced on Monday, September 4 at 5 p.m.

Monday, September 2, 2024

From 5 p.m. – Place de l’Hôtel de Ville
Musical aubade of the VOGESIA Municipal Harmony.
Proclamation of results and graduation.
Delivery of the traditional gingerbread to the first Magistrate of the City.

Sunday, September 8, 2024

9:00 a.m.: Procession at the Our Lady of Dusenbach Pilgrimage. Departure Place de la Sinne with the participation of the VOGESIA Municipal Harmony.

The theme of Pfifferdaj 2024 –
The Ribeaupierre Games

The Pfifferdaj (Fête des Ménétriers de Ribeauvillé) is the oldest festival in Alsace. This event was able to preserve the traditions, costumes, colours and notoriety that hundreds of musicians and troubadours gave it from the 14th century. They then went to Ribeauvillé to celebrate their ties with the lords of Ribeaupierre who protected them. Nowadays, nearly 1,500 extras are invested in the manufacture of floats whose theme is renewed every year.

In this year 2024, it is a wink that is made at the Olympic Games in Paris with the Games of the (lords of) Ribeaupierre. Here is a summary of the story…

Back from the crusade, Count Eguenolphe de Ribeaupierre returns to Ribeauvillé. He finds his daughter Emeline, transformed into a beautiful young woman, to whom he offers two precious gifts: a book on the games of Olympia and a chess game still unknown in the West.

The count imposes an arranged marriage on his daughter. But the young woman, after studying the book on ancient games, proposes to organise chivalry events and board games to choose her suitor. This is how the Count organises the first games in Ribeauvillé’s history!

The competition promises to be difficult, with many competitors from the four corners of the empire. For her part, the young countess composes a women’s team with her friends and will face four teams of knights led respectively by: the Duke of Bavaria, the Duke of Burgundy, the Duke of Prussia and the Count of Horburg.

As you can guess, the elimination stages will not lack low blows, doping and situation reversals, creating a thrilling adventure told before your eyes in 20 paintings.

The parade as a whole tells the fantastic story that is the theme of the year. Download the detailed program below to see which tanks will parade on September 1, 2024…

Float of the great parade of the Pfifferdaj of Ribeauvillé.
Float of the great parade of the Pfifferdaj in Ribeauvillé. Every year, the associations that build and animate the floats show remarkable ingenuity. It’s always very spectacular!
Costumes and choreography of Ribeauvillé's Pfifferdaj.
At the Pfifferdaj, you will see magnificent costumes, incredibly original, made for the entire troupe on foot of each float. Here they are dresses made with printed pages of old books… And of course, the costumes are different for each float and new every year!

Pfifferdaj 2024 – Practical information – Good to know…

Rates to enter the city on Sunday, SEP 1, 2024

Adult & Young (+12 years old): €10
Child (6 to 12 years old): €5 / Child (- 6 years old): Free

Entrance tickets for the day of the parade are on sale only on the same day at the various entrances of the City. Entrance tickets do not entitle you to a seat in the grandstand.

Grandstand seats (reserved as a priority for the inhabitants of Ribeauvillé) are sold out.

Entrance to the city is charged only on the day of the procession.

My personal advice for the Sunday parade:

The great Pfifferdaj parade is known throughout the region and even beyond. Spectators come in incredible numbers for a historic event that is really worth it. Do not expect to attend the big parade by arriving ten minutes before.

From the end of the morning, parking spaces are stormed. Come early in the morning, attend the musical aubade given at the top of the mediaeval Tower of the Butchers (09:00 a.m.) while sipping your coffee. Enjoy the street entertainment. Several days before the event, you will have taken care to book a table in one of the city’s restaurants. Otherwise, you will have to settle for the snacks offered on the streets.

A small folding fisherman’s seat can help but above all don’t forget to bring something to drink and a hat (or umbrella, depending on the weather forecast).

Want to stay not far from the Pfifferdaj, just 4 small kilometres from Ribeauvillé? Welcome to the Riquewihr Ramparts!

To be discovered until the end of the autumn holidays 2024 (All Saints)

Couple of storks at Naturoparc, Hunawihr
One of the very many stork couples at Naturoparc, Hunawihr

NATUROPARC, a paradise for storks and otters in Hunawihr

Only 2 kilometres from our holiday accommodation in Riquewihr.

Originally, Naturoparc (the new name of the “Stork Park”) was exclusively a breeding site in captivity of the white stork. It is in order to safeguard the emblematic stork of Alsace that the Hunawihr Centre was born in 1976. They managed to find a technique to “repopulate” Alsace…

The Stork Park is open until November 11, 2024. For details and schedules, visit the Naturoparc in Hunawihr website.

Get to know the stork better
At Naturoparc, young and old will know everything about the stork, the emblematic bird of Alsace!

The Flying of the Eagles at Kintzheim Castle, at the foot of the Haut-Koenigsbourg

Apprentice falconer at the Eagle Flying
The children are delighted to be able to become an apprentice falconer at the Eagle’s Park (Volerie des Aigles)!

It has been almost 50 years since the venerable ruin of Kintzheim Castle on the slopes of Haut-Koenigsbourg became the sumptuous theatre of the Volerie des Aigles and its feathered residents. Ladies and gentlemen, what we offer you here is a ballet. An artistic aerial ballet during which the winged stars – these same majestic raptors that you will have approached when you arrived – will embark on staggering high aerobatics show under the guidance of their falconers.

Open until November 11, 2024.
More info (opening hours, fees, etc) to the Eagle’s Park, see their Google Maps page

The fabulous garden of exotic butterflies

In Hunawihr, right next to Naturoparc, a colourful walk to discover hundreds of exotic butterflies in the lush flora of tropical greenhouses. Butterflies lead a secret and hidden life. They are fragile and discreet beings. Butterflies unfortunately disappear very quickly everywhere in the world. You are here in the paradise of photographers. You will approach the butterflies within 10 cm and some may even land on you.

Open until November 3, 2024.
Website: https://www.jardinsdespapillons.fr

Butterfly garden in Hunawihr
The Butterfly Garden in Hunawihr is a wonder for young and old!

At the Monkey Mountain

At the Monkey Mountain in Kintzheim, approach 200 macaques!
The Monkey Mountain is an animal park located a few kilometres from the castle of Haut-Koenigsbourg and very close to the Volerie des Aigles. This year the park is celebrating its 55th anniversary. Here there is no cage, it is you who walk in a 24-hectare forest where you will be face-to-nose with the monkeys!

Open until November 11, 2024
Learn more about the Monkey Mountain.

An old monkey is enjoying a beautiful apple...
An old monkey is enjoying a beautiful apple…
Route des Crêtes des Vosges (Vosges ridge road) in autumn
Panorama from the Route des Crêtes des Vosges, between the Col des Bagenelles and the Col du Bonhomme. In the distance, the plain of Alsace is covered with clouds. On the horizon, in Germany the Kaiserstuhl hills and the Black Forest. A transversal overview of the Upper Rhine Valley. Very beautiful colours for this image taken on November 11.

An autumn day on the Route des Crêtes des Vosges.

How beautiful is this Road of the Ridges! I travel it all year round, in summer to take animal photos or to hide from the strong heat of July-August, but also in winter when it is transformed into a cross-country ski slope. In autumn, the forest is multicoloured: green, yellow, red, brown, enough to impress your eyes. So “hop-la!” (as they say in Alsace), put on your sneakers and make your way for an excursion on the ridge road and a short hike on the altitude muds. And then, a marcaire (local cow boy) meal in a mountain inn (after the effort, comfort haha).

Sunrise on Lac Blanc (White Lake) in mid-October.
Sunrise on Lac Blanc (White Lake) in mid-October.

After a beautiful day in the mountains, walking on the trails of the Vosges ridges and a good traditional lunch in a farm-inn, back to the vineyard for the night!

By booking one of our cottages located on the ramparts of Riquewihr, you will have a strategic base in the centre of Alsace, ideal for discovering the entire region and even the nearby Black Forest.

On the Munster cheese road.

Just like Alsace wine, the famous local cheese, Munster, also has its way. The Munster Valley, with its magnificent mountain landscapes, includes 16 villages where farm-inns, cheese farms and the Cheese House of the Valley offer you Munsters made with the milk of cows that graze in the surrounding mountains. A pure delight! This is an opportunity to take a nice excursion to the Munster valley and on the high-altitude pastures and then stop at a farm-inn and taste all this. Do not hesitate to buy some: they will put it under vacuum so that you can bring it back to the cottage without the smell of the munster embalming the car 😉

Dining room in the Treh farm in Markstein.
Dining room in the Treh farm in Markstein. A farm-inn lunch is always a moment of pleasure very popular with the Alsatians themselves. Avoid weekends and book before travelling.

The Vosges cow, queen of the mountain!

The “Vosgienne” cow wears a more or less regular white band on the back and stomach and black spots on the face. Its short croissant horns are curved upwards. She is of medium size.

The Vosges cow is remarkably rustic: she is an excellent walker. Hikers who follow the herd during the transhumance know something about it, watch the video later! The “Vosgienne” meets difficult terrain and contributes to the maintenance of high-altitude meadows; it maintains the diversity of flora.

The “Vosgienne” gives less milk than “plain” cows but it is of high quality, appreciated for munster cheese but also local specialties such as “barkas” and “bibeleskaes”. The “Cœur de massif” cheese is produced only with milk from the “Vosgienne” cow.

Cow of the Vogesian breed

Autumn transhumance, a great moment in the Munster Valley!

In the middle of spring, herds leave the valley farms to reach the high-altitude pastures. In autumn, they go the opposite way. When the altitude fodder has been grazed, the cows descend again to spend the winter warmer in the valley. It’s descending transhumance. It is a tradition still alive on many farms and a festive moment for farmers, their herds and today, for lovers of nature and rurality.

Many hikers follow the herds but be careful, the cows are fast and enduring. You have to be a (very) good walker. Watch this little video I made a few years ago on the Schiessroth farm, at the foot of the Hohneck, above the Gaschney.

2024 Transhumance and Pie Festival in Munster

Sunday, September 15, 2024

You will be in the atmosphere of folklore and Marcaire traditions, on the occasion of the Munster Transhumance Festival, which celebrates the return of Vosges cows to the valley. Demonstrations of cheesemaking, mini-farm, dances and horns of the Alps delight young and old, not to mention the marcaire meal at the Salle des Fêtes (tasting of the real valley pie) and the parade of beautiful Vosges cows in the streets of Munster around 4 p.m.

Throughout the day: peasant market, concerts, animations, games and exhibitions on the theme of Transhumance.

The complete 2024 program of the Transhumance and Pie Festival in Munster is here.

Transhumance Festival in Muhlbach-sur-Munster

Saturday, October 12, 2024 from 09:30 to 24:00

The Transhumance Festival in Muhlbach-sur-Munster is the largest festival in the Vosges Mountains! A great opportunity to discover the cows of the Vosges breed, honoured on this occasion. According to custom, the famous clarines, lustre for this great day, are put at the neck of the animals.

The procession of Vosges cows (Vosgienne), but also brown cows from the Alps and others, promises to be colourful: some 200 animals from several high-altitude farms will cross the streets of the village to the sound of the clarines. Hikers can join them on the course.

Enough to participate in an amazing folkloric show, do not deprive yourself of spending a pleasant time with your family in the heart of this beautiful Alsatian valley! If you have not been able to go yourself to an altitude farm-inn to taste the traditional marcaire meal (the “marcaire” is the “cow-boy” from the Vosges), you will have the opportunity to eat it at the party.

Detailed program of the Transhumance Festival 2024 in Muhlbach-sur-Munster

Indian summer and early autumn: Riquewihr and Alsace in all their splendour…

Autumn in Alsace is also the grape harvest season which, depending on the years and the weather, can extend until the end of October for grands crus and late harvests. During the months of September and October, there are still some beautiful wine festivals and many gastronomic opportunities such as the now famous “Week of Taste”.

The summer crowds are gone and those of the Christmas markets are still far away.

Learn more about the beautiful wines of Riquewihr on my dedicated page: sorts of wine, history, how and where to taste the best wines, addresses of my preferred winemakers.

The village of Riquewihr in autumn. At the foot of the Vosges mountain, it is ideally located in the heart of the Alsace vineyards.
The village of Riquewihr in autumn. At the foot of the Vosges mountain, it is ideally located in the heart of the Alsace vineyards.

At the end of October, a major gold foliage symphony.

At the beginning of October, the foliage is still very green. But as All Saints approaches (November 1) will come the period of golden foliage that will last almost until the period of the Christmas markets.

And in the small village of La Vancelle (where we have our Mountain Hiker holiday home), on the mountainside, just like in the vineyard around Riquewihr, autumn is a flamboyant season, bright with warm and golden colours, perhaps the most aesthetic of the year.

As you have understood, autumn is a magnificent season in Alsace and the Rhine Valley for all gourmets and nature lovers. Sure, you will love it!


VIDEO

 Riquewihr in the fall and grape harvest period

Beyond words, discover the video we made that shows you the beauty of Riquewihr in the fall and a harvest morning on the hillside of Schoenenbourg. To be in the front row, nothing could be easier: stay in one of our cottages in the Riquewihr Ramparts.

Choose yours and be welcome!

Autumn is the harvest season, we harvest beautiful grapes!

In Riquewihr and throughout Alsace, the harvest usually begins at the end of August at the beginning of September (for grapes intended for crémant)!

This is the moment expected by everyone, we will cut the long-awaited grapes. The blows of pruning cuts are going well. The small bugets make the large tanks and little by little, the clusters join the press.

The long harvest period is a great opportunity to take nice walks in the vineyards (but remain on the paths) and watch the harvesters in action. The grapes from the hillsides classified as Grand Cru are harvested last, often at the end of October.

Pay a visit to the winemakers and discover Alsace wines

Is it raining? Is this really a problem? On that day, the winemaker certainly does not pick his grapes. Take the opportunity to meet him and taste his wines. Push the door of one of the many tasting cellars in the region, and discover the wines of local winegrowers.
Check the list of my favourite winemakers, in Riquewihr and in neighbouring villages.

Late harvest on the Schoenenbourg hillside in Riquewihr.
Late harvest on the Schoenenbourg hillside in Riquewihr. Throughout the summer and fall, the mountain breeze that descends toward the vineyard at night brings freshness that promotes slow and prolonged ripening of the grapes. This very particular climate gives elegant and complex aromas to the wines. Beyond the hillsides covered with vines, fog is present on the plains.

The “Neuer Sisser”, the new sweet wine, a curiosity to be discovered only in autumn…

Once the grapes are cut, they go to the press. The precious juice flows out and will start to ferment to become wine. Without waiting for a complete alcoholic fermentation, we can already taste the juice after a few weeks: it is the new wine. The alcohol level is low and the sugar of the grapes is still very present, but the characteristics of the different Alsatian grape varieties are already being identified. No more grape juice and no real wine yet, new wine (not to be confused with early wines that are real wines) can only be enjoyed on site. It is untransportable because it is in full fermentation and therefore cannot be placed in a closed bottle. At many winemakers it is possible to taste it.

New wine tasting
New wine tasting. Several wine villages organise new wine festivals, here in Orschwihr in early October.

Halloween and All Saints’ Day autumn holidays with children…

Halloween pumpkins

It was once said that on the night of October 31 to November 1, the boundaries between the world of the living and that of the dead were very thin. It is then that darkness and light rub shoulders…

Before Halloween, a folkloric and pagan festival strongly celebrated in Anglo-Saxon countries, brought to us the fashion of pumpkins dug in the shape of faces, Alsace had a very old tradition that went back much further than the Middle Ages. Skull-shaped fodder beets were dug to simulate skulls. Inside these beets, a candle was placed and placed on the window sills. The grimacing faces of the beets gave the children chills. These frightening lanterns, which were lit in the evening and which shone on the windowsills, were to guide the dead.

Nowadays, the tradition has practically disappeared but I still remember that when I was a kid, a long time ago, my grandfather (he was a farmer) showed me how to dig these beets.

Nowadays, we often think that Halloween is a Celtic rite. Well, not at all!

Historians have shown that originally, the tradition was Germanic. The “Rübengeister” (spirits hidden in turnips) are known throughout Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Belgium, French Flanders, and formerly in Alsace, Moselle and England. But this custom is unknown in the vast Celtic territories of Gaul, for example.

Good to know
Halloween is none other than the recent name of the “Rübengeister”, a Germanic custom, imported to the British Isles by the Saxons, Angles, Frisians and other Danes. Later, the Irish introduced it to the United States, where beets were changed into pumpkins.

Halloween at the Haut-Koenigsbourg castle

From October to early November 2024 (at the end of the All Saints’ Day school holidays), the famous Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg is inhabited by the spirit of Halloween.

With its procession of chills, imagination and mysteries, the castle will make you tremble with fear… or shudder with pleasure!

Adults with teenagers, with young children, or with friends, at the castle you will find the ideal activity to celebrate the darkness. BRRRRR!

Nocturne at the Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg for Halloween.
Nocturne at the Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg for Halloween.

There is no doubt that as Halloween 2024 approaches, the Haut-Koenigsbourg dungeon will be threatened again. Will we once again see Professor Schutzhausen’s team try, with your help, to put an end to this evil? Will you take part in this investigation, between Murder party and Escape Game?

We will know more in some time, when the defenders of the fortress have managed to communicate with the outside world. Be careful, in the very heart of the dungeon, the atmosphere is cold, humid and dark… Will you endure the tension and anguish of this adventure?

In the meantime, you can go through the door of the castle of Haut-Kœnigsbourg, and dive into the world of the Middle Ages. From the low courtyard with its inn, forge and mill, to the spiral staircases that lead to the lord’s furnished apartments… You will discover an architecture, collections, an atmosphere full of 900 years of history. And it is by visiting the castle freely or by joining a guided tour by a guide (formula that I really recommend), that you will fully discover the fortress, its riches and details.

Halloween and the Tales and Legends of Autumn at the living museum of Alsace.

Located near Guebwiller, 45 minutes from Riquewihr, the Living Museum of Alsace is the largest open-air museum in France. It is organised as an Alsatian village from the beginning of the 20th century. It presents an exceptional collection of buildings and everyday objects and participates in the transmission of gestures and artisanal know-how. The village is formed by an exceptional collection of traditional houses that have been dismantled beam by beam in their municipality of origin and brought up to the Ecomusée d’Alsace to save them.

Every year, with the approach of the Halloween party and the All Saints’ Day period, the Ecomusée d’Alsace invites you to dive into a universe where tales and legends punctuate the lives of villagers.

In this mysterious atmosphere, storytellers will be happy to share with you traditional stories, where superstitions and popular beliefs mingle! While nature is adorned with its most beautiful colours, the mystery gradually infiltrates the alleys of the village…

From Saturday, October 19 to Sunday, November 3, 2024, you will live a timeless moment!

The details of the program on the website of the Ecomuseum of Alsace.

Autumn colours and flavours at the Alsace living museum.
Autumn colours and flavours at the Alsace living museum. Preparation of jam as in the past…

Sites of memory of the First World War 1914-1918 in the Vosges (WW1).

Cartoon depicting the Linge fights in 1916
Humorous but squeaky drawing made by a German officer in December 1916. The man perched at the top of the rock is the Schratzmännele mountain (near the Linge) that the French and Germans are desperately trying to snatch from the opponent.

In 1914, it had been 43 years since Alsace and the Moselle department had been integrated into the German Empire (1871) and formed the Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen whose capital was Strasbourg. For nearly half a century, the “lost” provinces have fuelled French nationalist discourse. The desire for revenge was one of the objectives of WW1, the First World War.

From August 4, 1914, the French army was ordered to enter Alsace to seize the main valleys and cities. After rapid success (Mulhouse was taken over as early as August 8 and scouts had even managed to push to the gates of Colmar), the French army is nevertheless forced to abandon the conquered territories in an ephemeral way and must withdraw.

After this war of movement, the front stabilised on the heights of the Vosges (the old border) during the months of October and November 1914. Germans and French have been face to face for several years. Everyone tries to take back the most strategic positions, leaving an incredible number of dead on the battlefield.

Many of these memory sites benefit from being visited. Franco-German associations maintain trenches, combat posts and military cemeteries. They also animate museums. The winters of the Great War were terribly harsh in the Vosges. Nature has regained its rights in the places where hell reigned just over 100 years ago and the old battlefields are crossed by hiking trails. These important memorial sites must be visited by November 11 at the latest because even today, these memorial sites are closed in winter.

Hartmannswillerkopf Memorial and Battlefield – HWK

The front line begins in the south of Alsace, at the Swiss border (Kilometre Zero). In this area, near Mulhouse, the Massif des Vosges is dominated by an impressive rocky spour overlooking the Alsace plain and the village of Hartmannswiller, the Hartmannswillerkopf. The French call it the Old Armand (Hartmann is the German first name for Armand). French and Germans are fiercely fighting for this strategic observation post. In 1915 alone, the summit changed sides 4 times. Fighting continues throughout the war on this battlefield devastated by shells, gases and flamethrowers.

The exact number of deaths will never be known but at least 30,000 soldiers perish there.

A path reminiscent of a trench leads to an imposing and spectacular memorial, easily accessible from the road. Under the esplanade is a large crypt with the remains of 12,000 unknown soldiers. The commemorations of the Armistice of November 11 are moving and impressive.

Hartmannswillerkopf luminous cross
Nightfall on the large luminous cross of the Hartmannswillerkopf. I took this photo after the commemoration of the Armistice of November 11, 2018, exactly 100 years after the end of the conflict.

On the eastern flank of the memorial is a large cemetery that gathers 1,264 tombs of identified French soldiers as well as six mass graves.

If you have a little time in front of you and you are properly put on, take the trouble to continue on foot to the east and the plain of Alsace. Where the Great Cross and the observatory that has been the scene of so many clashes are located. The vast battlefield is travelled by many hiking trails. Since 2017, a Franco-German historia pays tribute to all the fighters and presents spectacular documents and images on what was the daily life of the fighters on both sides.

The battlefield is permanently accessible. The historial is open every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (6 p.m. on Sundays & holidays) until November 17, 2024, before closing for the winter.

Learn more about the Hartmannswillerkopf.

Linge Memorial, museum and battlefield.

The Linge Ridge is located in the Alsatian Vosges. 1,000 metres high, it separates the valleys of Orbey and Munster, about twenty kilometres west of Colmar.

Classified as a historical site since 1921, it is one of the deadliest battlefields of the First World War. During this conflict, the Germans had organised their Defence on the Linge ridge line in order to prevent the advance of French troops towards Colmar.

Guidance table on the Linge battlefield in Alsace
Guidance table on the Linge battlefield in Alsace. Seeing this panorama that opens onto Alsace, we understand why the control of this rocky spur was of such strategic importance!

From July 20 to October 15, 1915, alpine hunters, often aged 19-20, launched the assault on this impregnable bastion. Gas shells and flamethrowers were used.

About 10,000 French and 7,000 Germans perished during this period before the troops froze and remained face to face until the end of the conflict in November 1918 (see the German cartoon above).

The site we visit today is a large rocky nipple, a land dotted with shelters and squared by a network of fortified trenches covered with a shaky moor and a few trees. The period barbed wire has not been removed and everything is admirably well preserved. It is difficult to imagine that this superb place, whose northern tip of the nipple forms a rocky spour from which we have a magnificent view, has witnessed such a butchery. However, hundreds of soldiers on both sides are still resting there.

At the Memorial Museum, French and German objects found on site are exhibited: weapons, ammunition, relics and personal objects. Showcases present mannequins of French and German fighters, models of the battlefield, period photographs, letters written by soldiers, maps showing tactical operations. A video projection of period photographs is also offered to visitors.

The Linge Memorial Museum is open from the beginning of April to November 11, 2024.

Learn more about the Battle of Linge and its memorial museum…