A Church and Museum in Albert, France

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Albert is a town in Picardie in northern France and located in the Somme department. We visited some sites from World War I. Albert was founded as a Roman outpost in about 54 BC. One of its more well-known attractions is the 'Leaning Virgin' which once sat atop the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Brebières. Originally known as the Golden Virgin, the statue, designed by sculptor Albert Roze, was hit by a shell in 1915 and slumped to a near-horizontal position. Depending on which side you were fighting, the eventual fall of the statue would signify victory or defeat in the war. It remain slumped until 1918 when further shelling toppled the tower. The town was completely reconstructed after the war. The Basilica was rebuilt and a replica of the Virgin was constructed. The Abri (Shelter) Museum houses memorabilia from the war. The museum is located in a series of tunnels which once served as protective bunkers for the residents during aerial bombardment during World War II. There are reconstructions of various scenes together with many photographs and maps. I have included photos of several notices which are interesting to read if you want to halt the slideshow at those points. The tunnels pass under the Basilica square and when we emerged after our visit, we were disoriented and for a while had no idea where we had left the motor-home.