Rouvres-en-Woëvre – Rouvres Mill
and the Battle of Etain-Buzy – August 23 – 26, 1914
South of the village of Rouvres-en-Woëvre is Rouvres Mill. The settlement was first mentioned in the mid-14th century; over the centuries, water from a stream fed a fish pond and operated a mill to process the grain of the surrounding farms and fields. In 1886, the pond was drained and the property was thereafter used solely for agricultural purposes.
Battle of Etain-Buzy – August 23 – 26, 1914
Between August 22 and 26, 1914, the area around Rouvres-en-Woëvre was the scene of heavy fighting. This was part of the concluding Battles of the Frontiers, which were brought about on the one hand by the German Schlieffen Plan, and on the other by the French Plan XVII, both of which were strict offensive strategies.
The Germans concentrated their offensive efforts on the northern wing of their armies, which was to advance through Belgium and envelop the French forces. The French began an attack with their own right wing on August 14, 1914. The 1st and 2nd Armies under Generals Auguste Dubail and Noël de Castelnau were to attack eastward toward Saarburg and via Château-Salins toward Morhange. The objective was to establish a strong position as close to the Rhine as possible. Facing them on the German side was the 6th Army under Bavarian Crown Prince Rupprecht. This army had the task of tying down as many French troops as possible through a strategic withdrawal and keeping them away from the main front on the northern German wing.
Initially, the Bavarians adhered to this passive role. On August 20, 1914, however, Rupprecht saw an opportunity for a counterattack that was intended to drive the French 1st and 2nd Armies onto the defensive and push the Bavarians far into French territory. Particularly in the small municipality of Nomeny, units of the 4th Royal Bavarian Infantry Regiment carried out executions of civilians, looting, and arson. The small village of Rouvres-en-Woëvre was to experience such atrocities just four days later.
Continuing its Plan XVII, despite the threatening situation on both French flanks, the 3rd and 4th French Armies under generals Pierre Ruffey and Fernand de Langle de Cary also advanced in the center of the front in the direction of the Ardennes. This was done under the assumption that the German attack center was only weakly held and would have little to oppose the French with their mobile artillery. However, this was not the case. The 5. Armee (Fifth Army) of German Crown Prince Wilhelm was advancing, as was the 4. Armee (Fourth Army) of the Duke of Württemberg, which adjoined to the north. The enemy troops collided haphazardly in the Ardennes. On August 22, 1914, fierce fighting broke out, especially for localities in the Belgian-French border area such as Virton, Tintigny, Ochamps, Rossignol, and Neufchâteau. Ultimately, the Germans kept the upper hand. The outcome of these battles brought the French to the brink of defeat. August 22, 1914, remained the day with the highest casualties for them throughout the entire war. Over 27,000 French soldiers fell on this day.
Also in the sector of the 6. bayerische Armee (6th Bavarian Army), the attack progressed swiftly. The advance of the Bavarians led in September 1914 with the capture of the barrier fort Camp des Romains to the formation of the St. Mihiel salient. Between the 6. bayerische Armee (6th Bavarian Army) and the 5. Armee (Fifth Army), the 33. Reserve-Division (33rd Reserve Division), originating from the main reserve of the Metz fortress, had been inserted as part of the newly formed Armeekorps von Oven. The troops were intended to support the advance of the German armies on the flanks. Units of the 3rd French Army as well as the Armee de Lorraine that emerged from it had launched their own attacks in the preceding days, and heavy fighting occurred in the eastern French border region. Ultimately, however, the Germans succeeded by August 23, 1914, in pushing the French back northeast of Verdun to the Othain River between Montmédy and Spincourt. On August 24, 1914, another attack was to be launched incorporating the 33. Reserve-Division. The subsequent fighting within the framework of the so-called Battle of Étain-Buzy brought the war to the area of Rouvres-en-Woëvre.
On August 23, 1914, the 33. Reserve-Division received the order to reach the area southeast and east of Étain in forced marches in order to cover the further advance of the 5. Armee (Fifth Army) north of the Verdun fortress on its left flank. The 8. bayerische Infanterie-Brigade (8th Bavarian Infantry Brigade) with Regiments 4 and 8 marched via Gorze, Mars-la-Tour, Puxe into the area north of Jeandelize and Olley. The 66. Reserve Infanterie-Brigade (66th Reserve Infantry Brigade) with Reserve Regiments 67 and 130 as well as the remaining parts of the division moved from Novéant and Ars-sur-Moselle via Conflans, Thumeréville into the Béchamps area. On the morning of August 24, 1914, the area around Rouvres Mill and Rosa Farm was occupied without a fight by Bavarian Regiments 4 and 8. From there, the units deployed and advanced as ordered in the direction of Amel-sur-l’Étang and Éton. To the east, Reserve Regiments 67 and 130 joined in. The attack initially progressed well. However, the German units were then embroiled in heavy fighting from the direction of Étain as well as the Tilly Forest by parts of the French 220th Infantry Regiment (220e RI). Toward evening, the area around Amel-sur-l’Étang was captured and initially held against French attack attempts.
The night of August 25, 1914, brought a subsiding of the fighting. Both Germans and French had suffered massive casualties. There was a lack of ammunition. Rations and water could not be brought forward. On August 25, 1914, the fighting continued with full intensity. The French received reinforcements from parts of the Armée de Lorraine, which were approaching from the area of the Verdun fortress. On the German side, the 43. und 45. Landwehr-Brigade (43rd and 45th Landwehr Brigades) entered the fighting. When a superiority became apparent in favor of the French, and a flank threat also arose from approaching and clearly superior French forces from a southern direction, the Germans broke off the fighting and retreated in the direction of Briey.
The French did not pursue. They themselves began their retreat in a western direction starting on August 26, 1914. Units of the 5. preußischen Armee (5th Prussian Army) had reached the Meuse north of Verdun. The French near Etain were threatened with envelopment. With the mutual retreat, the Battle of Etain-Buzy ended. Even though the fighting was very costly in casualties, the Germans had achieved an essential objective, namely to cover the advance of the XVI. Armee-Korps (XVI Corps) north of Verdun.
The Massacre of Rouvres-en-Woevre – August 24, 1914
During the German attack, parts of the 4. bayerischen Infanterie-Regiments (4th Bavarian Infantry Regiment), the 130. Reserve-Infanterie-Regiments (130th Reserve Infantry Regiment) and other units marched through the village of Rouvres-en-Woëvre in the early afternoon of August 24, 1914. The village was undefended. As they advanced further, the German soldiers came under heavy fire still within the area of the village from the direction of today’s air base (Hill 232) as well as the Bois de Tilly. High casualties occurred. What followed were the cruelest assaults by the soldiers on the civilian population. Houses were set on fire, alleged francs-tireurs were dragged out of the houses and executed by the dozens at the edge of the village. Fleeing residents, among them elderly people, women, and children, were locked in the burning houses, beaten to death, stabbed, or shot. Women were raped. The remains of the village, which burned until the next day, were plundered. All of this happened under the eyes of German officers.
The German side attempted to justify the events with the claim that the inhabitants of the village had treacherously taken up arms (cf. pp. 17 f. of the history of the 130th Reserve Infantry Regiment [RIR 130]). However, neither German soldiers questioned about the circumstances nor surviving villagers could confirm this version. It is more likely that the extraordinary brutality of the fighting as well as the high number of fallen and wounded who could not be cared for resulted in a desire for revenge among the soldiers, which was vented on the population of the village. In Rouvres-en-Woëvre, approximately 90 civilians died at German hands within a short time on that day.
Following this tragedy, which in relevant publications is frequently compared to the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of August 24, 1572, Rouvres-en-Woëvre no longer existed. It was only rebuilt after the war when surviving inhabitants gradually returned.
The military-historical contexts and the events in Rouvres-en-Woëvre on August 24, 1914, are described in detail in the book “Etain Buzy première victoire devant Verdun” by Nicolas Czubak.
Rouvres-Mühle – Moulin de Rouvres
After the end of the Battle of Etain-Buzy, the area around Rouvres-en-Woëvre became a German rear area. In every village and every forest section, troop accommodations and other logistics facilities were established to supply the units stationed at the front near Verdun.
The Rouvres Mill was already used as a field hospital during the fighting in August 1914, first by the French and subsequently by the Germans. The area was gradually expanded. Toward Rosa-Ferme, accommodations for several 100 soldiers, supply depots, and other facilities were established.
The resulting, steadily expanding camp area received a light railway connection that enabled a connection both forward to the areas close to the front and backward to the rear area. The camp later known as the Rouvres Mill Camp was one of the essential supply facilities of the German army behind the Verdun front from 1916 onwards. Changing units had their command post here.
The area around the Rouvres Mill was used by German troops until the end of the war and was evacuated without a fight after the armistice. Many of the buildings are preserved in a nearly authentic state, including some wall paintings and inscriptions. In the surrounding area, there are other buildings from the period of the German occupation, such as a house built specifically for the accommodation of officers, which unfortunately is in danger of collapsing. Toward Rosa-Ferme, one can explore the grounds of the former Rouvres Mill Camp with the remains of individual stone and concrete buildings. In addition, the building of the former Rouvres Mill railway station can be found in astonishingly good condition in a meadow near the mill.
were AI-edited (notice pursuant to Art. 50 Regulation (EU) 2024/1689).