Soke Military Society

BuiltWithNOF
French Branch

The French Branch of the Society has doubled its membership which now amounts to two! Franck Dizambourg our representative on the Somme has recruited his friend (and English speaker) Pascal. It may come as no surprise to know that Franck’s main interest is the Somme battlefields of the First World War.

We first met Franck about fifteen years ago while we were field-walking part of the Somme battlefield. He told us we were not in a good area and took us to a very interesting location where a great deal of fighting had taken place. Here we came across a great number of interesting artifacts and we have returned every year since. Franck just goes to prove that the ‘Entente Cordiale’ is still alive and kicking!

French Branch Logo

VIDEO

Click the picture on the left to see a practice shot in the first Somme Open Golf Championship with the new ‘MUD BALL’

Frank 2007 200

Franck Dizambourg on the Somme.

Franck & Roger

The French people we have met have been wonderful. Their hospitality has been second to none. The weather has not always been so obliging, but let’s face it, the weather back in the UK is not the most reliable. The food and the scenery, yes, its not all flat in northern France, has been spectacular. But lets not forget why we go every year, it is to walk the battlefields and visit the memorials and museums. Everyone should visit this area at some point. We all have ancestors lying here.

The French Branch of the Society in session

A picture show of some recent experiences

WWI Collection 1

WWI Collection 2

Grenades, French water bottle and cartridges found in 2006 on the Somme

Close up

WWI  Screw Pickets

WWI Bone

WWI barbed wire screw pickets used by a modern day farmer to hold up a fence

Unburied bone (part of pelvis)

German machine gun in museum

German relic machine gun

German machine gun in Peronne Museum

Same type found on the battlefield

German machine gun in museum

German relic machine gun

Museum example

Battlefield relic

Martinpuich Bunker

Franck at bunker

German bunker at Martinpuich

Franck at the bunker

Inside German bunker

Roger and Ted at bunker

Inside the bunker

Roger and Ted at the bunker

Roger & Ted

Roger and Franck

Roadside ammunition dump.

An intricate search.

Roger

Jan & Douglas

Can you see the relic?

“Can you hear something ticking?”

Franck and Boys

Tank

A trio of searchers.

That took some digging up!

Franck in bunker

Collection

A newly discovered bunker.

A tiny part of the annual haul

Flint

Shell

A weapon found from an earlier time!

The Battlefields

Below are some photographs taken at the French National Resistance Museum in Northern France in 2008

French steam train

French railway wagon

French steam engine used to transport prisoners to the cenentration camps

Wagon in which the prisoners travelled

American transport aircraft

Reinforced sentry box

American aircraft used to transport French agents

Sentry box for protection in air raids

American transport aircraft

American transport aircraft

Transport aircraft for French agents

Transport aircraft for French agents

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