Mametz, Somme


Mametz is a former commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Carnoy-Mametz.

Geography

Mametz is situated on the D64 road, some northeast of Amiens and east of Albert. Fricourt lies to the west, Contalmaison is to the north, Montauban-de-Picardie to the north-east and Carnoy and Maricourt are to the south-east. Mametz Wood is 1,000 yards to the north-west. Before the First World War, the village was the fifth largest in the area, with about and had a station on the line from Albert to Péronne.

History

In the First World War, the area was the site of intense and sustained fighting between German and Allied forces. Between 1914 and 1916, the Western Front ran through Mametz, and the area was devastated. In 1916, Mametz was the site of particularly heavy fighting during the Battle of the Somme. It was also one of the sites where British mines were exploded on the first day of that battle. After the Armistice of 11 November 1918, the former inhabitants returned and gradually rebuilt most of the infrastructure as it had been before the war. There is a memorial in the commune to the 38th Division at Mametz Wood.

Population