To mark the 106th anniversary of the Liberation of Le Quesnoy, Te Arawhata, in collaboration with the New Zealand Community in France, prepared a three-day itinerary of activities in the Hauts-de-France.
The festivities commenced on Saturday 2 November with a traditional northern meal in Valenciennes, a city just 15 minutes from Le Quesnoy. Welsh au maroilles (cheese and beer stew), brochettes de bœuf (beef skewers) and crème brulée were washed down with bières typical of the region.
Day 2 consisted of a trip to Arras to visit the Wellington Tunnels, the site of the largest surprise attack of the First World War made possible by a network of tunnels 18 kilometres long dug by the New Zealand Tunnelling Company. A highlight of the Carrière Wellington experience was learning of the Tunnellers’ response when asked to salute the British officers: “Do you want discipline or work?” If the men had to down tools every five minutes, the tunnels would not be ready for the date of the assault. “We should be proud of what the Kiwis achieved here, not only with their tunnelling but with their Kiwi ethics and way of life – what they decided they were going to do changed forevermore how soldiers were looked at,” said Jacki, one of our guests. Following the visit, the group was not above ground for long, as lunch took place in the beautiful, vaulted cellars of The French House pub. The hearty meal helped us shake off the winter cold, but threatened to keep us from getting back up the stairs!
Finally, 4 November was upon us and the group arrived in Le Quesnoy. The day began with a guided tour of Te Arawhata. Our guests noted the beauty and simplicity of the Wētā Workshop experience. For our guest Regan, “it was very moving… one of the best museums I’ve been to.”
With an understanding of the story of Liberation, the group moved on to the Le Quesnoy Communal Cemetery Extension to pay their respects to the fallen Commonwealth soldiers. We were delighted to be joined by Matthew Stewart of Memory Anchor, a Canadian company whose app provides interactive information about the servicepeople buried in Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries. Matthew then joined us for lunch at La Goudale, another typical northern-style establishment providing delicious carbonade (beef and beer casserole) and flammekueche (France’s answer to pizza).
We spent the afternoon amongst the ramparts of Le Quesnoy. One visitor, Rob, considered the tour of the ramparts a highlight of the weekend, saying “it was quite revealing… it brought the whole experience to life.” The group shared that they had not expected the scale of the town’s fortifications – they agreed that had it not been for the bravery of the Kiwi soldiers, Le Quesnoy would have been impenetrable.
Following a cup of tea back at Te Arawhata, the group participated in the town’s commemorative service alongside New Zealand’s official representative, Nikki Reid, Deputy Head of Mission at the New Zealand Embassy in Paris. Starting this year in the museum’s courtyard, more than 100 people braved the cold and marched through Le Quesnoy to the New Zealand Memorial. Along the way, Te Arawhata Director Elizabeth Wratislav joined Le Quesnoy Mayor Marie-Sophie Lesne in unveiling a plaque marking the spot where Second Lieutenant Leslie Averill and his men scaled the town’s walls by ladder. The plaque’s message is trilingual, recorded in French, Te Reo Māori and English. Officials then laid wreaths at the Memorial and national anthems were sung for the first of several occasions throughout the evening. The local school choir’s rendition of God Defend New Zealand brought tears to the eye. It “touched my heart”, said Rob, while another of our visitors, Peter, called it a “privilege” to be at the service.
The commemorations continued through to the centre of Le Quesnoy, where speeches, anthems and drinks in the Town Hall concluded the official ceremonies. We toasted the special weekend with a dinner between our Kiwi guests and members of the local Le Quesnoy-New Zealand Association. Sitting checkerboard style, our attendees filled the air with song, laughter and (more than anything) franglish. A massive thank you to Anthony, the owner of Le Maori 2.0 for opening the restaurant for us on his day off.
Three days of discovery, remembrance and connection. Thank you to all who participated, both our guests and our partners across the region. We leave the last words for Rob:
“I took the chance to come here for three days. Every element has exceeded my expectations. The quality of the presentations, the extent of the involvement of the local people here in Le Quesnoy, it really is an experience that is well worthwhile – I’d recommend it to anyone.
“To think that there is this depth of connection across the world about an historical event 106 years ago, it’s wonderful to think that the world still has this in store.”