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Origin and history

The chapel Saint-Rémi, located in Cumières-le-Mort-Homme, was built in the first half of the 20th century at the site of the old church of the village, destroyed during the First World War. It adopts a sober architecture, with a rectangular cella less than 5 meters long, typical of funeral chapels. Surrounded by the communal cemetery, it perpetuates the memory of the victims and the disappeared village, classified among the nine communes "dead for France" of the Red Zone of Verdun.

Cumières-le-Mort-Homme is one of the nine Meusian villages destroyed during the Battle of Verdun (1916), considered unconstructable. Despite their physical disappearance, these municipalities retain a symbolic administrative existence. Between 1930 and 1934, nine memorial chapels, financed by war damage, were erected to honour these villages. Cumières, designed by architect Georges Perceval, embodies this unique memory duty in France.

The chapel, the ground of its plot and the wall of the cemetery have been protected since December 2021. Their location, near the old high street (now D123), recalls pre-war urban planning. The count of the building reflects its memorial vocation, distinct from monumental reconstructions. The shelter chapel also symbolizes the resilience of local populations, marked by a conflict that has redesigned the landscape and collective memory.

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