Help with Maastricht area please

Discussion in 'WW2 Battlefields Today' started by troopietraveller, Mar 1, 2013.

  1. G'day All,

    My Son and family are having a week in Maastricht and wondered if there were any WW2 sites in the area, saw a cave site but that was all I could find so if anyone has anything they could direct him too that would be much appreciated.

    Also with the caves area there are several listed but all have much the same discription so wondered if they are all the same complex but with different entrances, could anybody clear this up for me as well.

    Thanks for that.

    Cheers Rob
     
  2. ssg keay

    ssg keay Member

    Rob, outside of Maastricht is the town of Margraten. Margraten is the site of one of the American ABMC Military Cemeteries. All the graves have been adopted my Dutch citizens. Also, Maastricht is also within a 40 minute drive from the Westwall, or Siegfried Line. The same distance away is the first German city to fall to Allied troops, Aachen. South of Aachen are still rows of Dragon Teeth. If they have a rental car, go an hour and a half south to the sites of the Battle of the Bulge.
    Hope this helps, Danny
     
  3. DaveB

    DaveB Very Senior Member

    You could always check to see where the swimming carnival was held......
     

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  4. Wills

    Wills Very Senior Member

  5. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    ....
     
  6. Aixman

    Aixman War Establishment addict Patron

    G'day Rob,

    another (good one) of the former 16 forts (as Eben-Emael) of the ring around Liège: Battice.
    You can visit it as well, see link for further information.
    Fort Battice
     
  7. Slipdigit

    Slipdigit Old Hickory Recon

    Will you be going to Heerlen?
     
  8. Rich Payne

    Rich Payne Rivet Counter Patron 1940 Obsessive

    Rob, Is he / they interested in a particular period and are they independently mobile ? (If so, watch out for the speed cameras round Maastricht !)

    There is a lot within an hour and a half or so - most of the Market / Garden ops and from a 1940 perspective, Sedan / Stonne is not too far.

    If they have an interest in the bomber offensive then Cologne Cathedral is quite a patchwork.
     
  9. Sheldrake

    Sheldrake All over the place....

    There are quite a few battles and battlefields near Maastricht.

    You MUST visit the Dutch War Museum at Overloon, about an hour's drive north of Maastricht. It has an amazing collection of equipment. It also is one of the few museums to display the equipment from the battlefield on a preserved battlefield. This particularly poignant when you consider that the crew of the Churchill tank inside the museum lie in the cemetery a few hundred metres away outside it.

    You should try to see Eban Emael fortress. The museum in the underground fortress is open on different days depending on the time of the year - check on their website. If you read the story of hire a guide and just want to see where the action took place it is possible to visit the outside of the fortress even when the museum is shut. This is where the fighting took place.

    You might like to visit the village of Laufeld a few km away. This is the site of the battle of Laufeld in 1747 when the French army under Maurice de Saxe beat the Allied (Anglo Dutch Austrian) army of William Augustus Duke of Cumberland. This is a big battle and leads to the capture of Maastricht by the French. There is a memorial to the Irish Brigade the "wild geese" in the Village.

    Oh and you must visit the bridge at Maasrtricht bombed by the RAF and find out about the story of PO Garland and his crew.
     
  10. Thanks very much for your replies and ideas.:rolleyes:

    Will pass this on to Iain and he can plan his itinerary from there. He will have his two young Sons with him and I'm sure they will see and do as much as possible in the time they have.

    Cheers Rob
     
  11. Pieter F

    Pieter F Very Senior Member

    Overloon is a very good suggestion by Sheldrake. As well as the Margraten American Cemetery. There are also quite a few British cemeteries in the province of Limburg. Sittard, Venray, Nederweert..
     
  12. firefly7

    firefly7 Junior Member

  13. Thanks for all that, but one thing I cannot work out is the Maastricht tunnel system, are there many systems or does the system have several entrances with different names?

    Cheers Rob
     
  14. Richard1976

    Richard1976 Junior Member

    Thanks for all that, but one thing I cannot work out is the Maastricht tunnel system, are there many systems or does the system have several entrances with different names?

    Cheers Rob

    Did you check this website: http://www.maastrichtunderground.nl/eng
    Maybe this website can answer your question. There are a lot of entrances and guide tours, but don't think that the caves/tunnels are all connected to each other.

    During ww2 the caves/tunnels were used for shelter and during Christmas 1944 the caves were also used for the church service with US soldiers. Please see attachements.

    This forum Bevrijdingsmonumenten - Pagina 2 - MestreechOnline - Forum Stad Maastricht can provide you also some more information about WW2 in Maastricht. Only it's in dutch.

    Fort Eben Emael, just across the Belgian border, is also a must during your visit in Maastricht. Even wenn it's closed, it's still a great place to visit as you can walk on top of the fort and see the casemats etc.

    Hope you will enjoy your stay in the beautiful city of Maastricht.
     

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