Albert, Somme

Albert, Somme

Albert is a commune of the Somme department in Picardy in northern France. Population: approx. 10,500 inhabitants.

It is located about halfway between Amiens and Bapaume.

History

Albert was founded as a Roman outpost called "Encre", in about 54 BC. It is remembered today as the site of the Battle of the Somme in World War I.

During World War I, the statue of Mary and the infant Jesus - designed by sculptor Albert Roze and dubbed the "Golden Virgin" - on top of the Basilica of Notre Dame de Brebieres was hit by a shell on January 15, 1915, and was put on a horizontal position and was near falling. The Germans said that whoever made the statue fall would lose the war, and a number of legends surrounding the "Leaning Virgin" developed among German, French, and British soldiers. The Leaning Virgin became an especially familiar image to the thousands of British soldiers who fought at the Battle of the Somme (1916), many of whom passed through Albert, which was situated three miles from the front lines.

The German army recaptured the town in March 1918 during the Spring Offensive; the British, to prevent the Germans from using the church tower as an observation post, directed their bombardment against the basilica. The statue fell in April 1918 and was never recovered. In August 1918 the Germans were again forced to retreat, and the British reoccupied Albert until the end of the war.

Albert was completely reconstructed after the war, including widening and re-orienting the town's main streets. The Basilica, however, was faithfully rebuilt according to its original design by Eduoard Duthoit, the son of the architect who had overseen its construction in 1885-95. The present statue is an exact replica of Roze's original design, and a war memorial designed by Roze and featuring an image of the "Leaning Virgin" can be seen in the "Abri" (Shelter) Museum, which houses souvenirs of the war. The underground shelters in which the museum is located served as protective bunkers for Albert's residents during aerial bombardments in World War II.

This city also appears in a short story, The Garden of the Forking Paths, by the Argentine writer Jorge Luís Borges. In the story it is a place where is a British artillery park that the Germans are about to bomb during World War I.

See also

*Battle of Albert

Twin Town

Albert is twinned with the flagicon|United Kingdom British town of Ulverston in Cumbria.

External links

* [http://www.musee-somme-1916.org Museum website]
* [http://www.sommetouristique.com/images/basilique3.jpgImage of the Albert Basilica]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Albert (Somme) — Albert …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Albert (Somme) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Albert. 50° 00′ 10″ N 2° 39′ 10″ E …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Albert (Somme) — Para otros usos de este término, véase Albert. Albert Escudo …   Wikipedia Español

  • Albert (Begriffsklärung) — Albert steht für: einen männlichen Vor sowie einen Familiennamen, Albert (dort auch Namensträger) (719) Albert, den Asteroiden 719 Albert (Automarke), eine britische Automobilmarke (1920–1924) Albert Nil, Teil des Flusses Nil Orte und… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Albert — puede referirse a: Contenido 1 Personajes 2 Divisiones administrativas 3 Batallas 4 Véase también Personajes …   Wikipedia Español

  • SOMME 1916 — Bataille de la Somme Bataille de la Somme Informations générales Date 1er juillet 18 novembre 1916 Lieu Picardie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Albert — Infobox Given Name Revised name = Albert imagesize= caption= pronunciation= gender = Male meaning = noble bright region = origin = Germanic related names = footnotes = Albert is a common first name. The name has its origins in the Germanic name… …   Wikipedia

  • Albert Roze — Albert Dominique Roze Vierge Dorée sur le clocher de la basilique Notre Dame de Brebières à Albert …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Albert Gabriel Rigolot — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Rigolot. Albert Gabriel Rigolot Naissance 28 novembre 1862 Paris Décès 25 avril 1932 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Albert le Grand et Saint Thomas — Albert le Grand (1206 1280) et saint Thomas (1227 1274)     Albert le Grand et saint Thomas ont tous deux étudié en Italie, en des milieux où, sous l’impulsion de Frédéric II, celui que les Franciscains traitaient de « roi de pestilence » et d’«… …   Philosophie du Moyen Age

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”