General Travel Reference

Steves, Rick. Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door 2014. City ?: Avalon Travel Publishing, 2014 edition.

French Language and Culture

Clarke, Stephen. Talk to the Snail: Ten Commandments for Understanding the French. London: Bantam Press, 2006.

Platt, Polly. Savoir Flair! 211 Tips for Enjoying France and the French. City ?: Culture Crossings Limited, 2000. If one is not a Francophile, spending a few hours reading this book before a trip will bring peace of mind during the trip.

Maps for Driving

Michelin 500 Series Region Maps: 1/200,000 scale.
#514 Ile-de-France
#515 Champagne-Ardenne
#516 Alsace, Lorraine.

Maps for Battlefield Exploring

IGN Série Bleue Maps: 1/25,000 scale. These are essentially for getting off the beaten path to find where a specific action took place. Broadly speaking, the entire Meuse-Argonne Offensive can be covered with these maps: (North to South and East to West)

	3009Est Sedan
	3010Est Raucourt	3110Ouest Carignan
3011Ouest Vouziers	3011Est Grandpré	3111Ouest Stenay	3111Est Sivry	3211Ouest Damvillers
3012Ouest Monthois	3012Est Varennes	3112Ouest Montfaucon	3112Est Forêt de Verdun

Where to Purchase Maps?

First, Michelin and the Institut Geographique Nationale (IGN) both have websites: www.michelin-travel.com and www.ign.fr. Second, the bookshop on Verdun’s high street (Rue Mazel) sells them as well as numerous books about the war; and it is well worth a stop on the first day of a trip. Third, many stationary stores in the small towns will also sell the local Série Bleue maps.

Note that one does not have to purchase all the maps, if one is only interested in a specific regiment, division or individual.

This “old-school” webmaster has not yet mastered map applications for one’s cell phone.

Battlefield Guidebooks

American Battle Monuments Commission. American Armies and Battlefields in Europe: A History, Guide and Reference Book. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1938. First printed in 1928, the standard version was printed in 1938. It was reprinted in 1993, and there is also an electronic version available for download.

Casterman Le Guide Series. Première Guerre Mondiale de Flandres á l’Alsace, le guide. Tournai, Belgium: Editions Casterman, 1996. French text.

Coombs, Rose E. B. MBE. Before Endeavors Fade: A Guide to the Battlefields of the First World War. London: Battle of Britain Prints International Ltd., 1994.

Holt, Valmai & Tonie. Major & Mrs. Holt’s Concise Illustrated Battlefield Guide to the Western Front—South. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Books Limited, 2005.

Klauer, Markus. Militärgeschichtlicher Reiseführer zu den Schlachtfeldern des Ersten Weltkrieges: Lothringen und Elsass. Remscheid, Germany: Self published by Markus Klauer, 2009. German text.

Michelin & Cie. Illustrated Michelin Guides to the Battle-Fields (1914-1918): The Americans in the Great War, Volume 3, Meuse-Argonne Battle (Montfaucon, Romagne, St. Menehould). Easingwold, York, England: Facsimile copy published by G.H. Smith & Son, 1995.

Photo Books

Degrande, Wim and Goossens, Patrick. Verstild & Versteend / Weathered Witness: Relicten uit de Eerste Wereldoorlog / Relics of the First World War. Self published, 2007. Text in Dutch and English.

Kaluzko, Jean-Luc; Radet, Frédéric; and Dalmaz, Gérard. La Face Cachée / Die verborgene Seite: Empreintes de l’Armée Allemande / Spuren der deutschen Armee, 1914-1918. Louviers Cédex, France: Ysec éditions, 2005. French and German text.