Grave Monument Fôret

This grave monument in the cemetery of the Sainte Catherin's church commemorates the 7 inhabitants, including the Parish Priest, of the village of Fôret who were executed during the passage of, on August 5, 1914, by the German troops.

Recalling that on August 4, 1914, Germany's unexpected attack on neutral Belgium began, these victims were executed on the 2nd day of the attack.

CHABOT Oscar
Révérend Curé (reverend Priest), 34 years
DELVAUX Joseph, age 42
DELVAUX Victor, 24 years
MATZ Joseph, 23 years
SOURIS Jules, 52 years
BRISKO Antoine, 15 years

The youngest victim was only 15 years old according to the inscription !

The victims are also commemorated on the warmonument at Trooz. (Photo 5, right panel section.)

On the 2nd day of the war, the Germans' offensive went very badly. The intention was that troops should have already reached Liege. However, the Belgians fiercely resisted the German supremacy. In particular, the nearby Fort Fléron defended itself with all its might and kept firing on the German troops.

Germany thought they could overrun Belgium on their campaign to France without too much resistance. They were wrong. Belgium defended itself with pride and without fear.

It is known that as they passed through, the Germans nipped any resistance in the bud. Insurgent civilians who shot at passing troops, franc-tireurs, were shot at worst, and their houses set on fire. Anything that delayed the passage to France (Duisland was following the von Schlieffen plan to attack the weakly defended northern side of France through Belgium, which demanded a meticulous timetable), was crushed with brute force. France had to be defeated before Russia had mobilized its army and Germany would be in a two-front war.