Haumont-près-Samogneux, Grand Est France
Roman Catholic
Haumont-près-Samogneux is one of the six villages completely destroyed in the Battle of Verdun in 1916 and never rebuilt. The devastation was so total that in some areas no vegetation remained. The soil was polluted with lead, mercury, poison gas and unexploded ordinance; the infrastructure of roads, rail, bridges, ports and channels was all destroyed. Countless bodies were also buried here. In 1919 the area was declared beyond rehabilitation and each of the six villages given the unique distinction as a "village that died for France." Each of the towns has a chapel and memorial, the area remaining a testament to war. The chapel in Haumont-près-Samogneux is on the site of the former St Nicolas church, Haumont-le-Soleil.