Thiepval Visitor Centre, Somme Battlefields, France

Inside the Visitor Centre, with the model for the Thiepval Memorial and the photographic panel of the 600 missing men.
Inside the Visitor Centre, with the model for the Thiepval Memorial and the Panel of 600 of the 72,000 missing men.

The Thiepval Visitor Centre was built in 2004. It is located a short distance from the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing of the Somme and the Thiepval Anglo-French Cemetery.

The idea for a visitor centre museum was first discussed at the annual ceremony of Remembrance on 1st July 1998. Sir Frank Sanderson led a small group in the campaign to build this educational centre. The Anglo-French project was brought to fruition with the help of generous donations to meet the British fundraising target of £660,000.

The Role of the Visitor Centre Museum

The Visitor Centre welcomes over 150,000 of visitors to the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing each year. At the Visitor Centre the memorial is put in the context of the battlefield. Display panels in three languages — English, French and German — provide an overview of the course of the Great War from 1914-1918.

Exhibition display panel in the Visitor Centre.
Exhibition display panel in the Visitor Centre.

Display panels focus on the events during the Battle of the Somme in 1916 which occurred at the small village of Thiepval and its surroundings. Three films, each lasting approximately 10 minutes, have been specially compiled covering Thiepval, The Battle of the Somme and Memory.

The Panel of the Missing

Photographs of 12 of the men from the Panel of the Missing.
12 photographs from the Panel of the Missing

In the entrance of the Visitor Centre a panel of 600 photographs represents the 72,000 men whose names are commemorated on the nearby Thiepval Memorial to the Missing.

The work on collating information on the Missing of the Somme will continue. There are computers at the Visitor Centre which currently hold data on the 600 men featured in the Panel of the Missing. It is intended that the records will be updated as additional data is collected.

If you have photographs of information on a soldier who is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing you can contact Pam and Ken Linge, who are co-ordinating this project.

Location of Thiepval Visitor Centre

The Thiepval Visitor Centre is located close to the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing. It can be reached from the D929 main road from Albert to Bapaume. In the village of Pozières on the D929 the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing is signposted to Thiepval on the D73.

Opening Hours

Visitor Centre reception and shop.
Visitor Centre reception and shop

Daily 10.00 - 18.00 hours

Closed for 15 days around Christmas and New Year's Day

Admission

Free

Facilities

A fully illustrated 95 page Exhibition Centre Guidebook is available from the shop to purchase.

A leaflet and poster of the 600 soldiers in the “Panel of the Missing” is available to purchase.

Contact Information

Thiepval Visitor Centre, Rue de l'Ancre, 80300 Thiepval, France

+33 (0)3 22 74 65 44

Location

The visitor centre is located close to the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing.

Related Links

The Anglo-French military cemetery in the grounds of the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing.
Anglo-French military cemetery in the grounds of the Thiepval Memorial to the Missing

Building the Visitor Centre

For information about the origins of the Anglo-French project to build the Visitor Centre go to:

www.thiepval.org.uk

Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery

The memorial and cemetery are located a few hundred yards from the Thiepval Visitor Centre:

Thiepval Memorial and Anglo-French Cemetery

Historial de la Grande Guerre, Péronne

The Thiepval Visitor Centre is managed by the Historial de la Grande Guerre museum:

Historial de la Grande Guerre

Cemeteries and Monuments on the Somme Battlefields

There are many military cemeteries and monuments on the Somme 1914-1918 battlefields. For a comprehensive list and the locations go to:

Cemeteries on the Somme Battlefields Monuments on the Somme Battlefields

Visiting the Somme Battlefields

The Somme Battlefields of WW1, France