KM ZERO: Where the Western Front Started

KILOMETER ZERO: The Southern Anchor of the Western Front

From the Belgian coast to the Swiss border – 725 kilometers of trenches, bunkers, and barbed wire. This is where it all ended. Or where it all began.

I walk the Kilometer Zero circuit at Pfetterhouse, Alsace, exploring the forgotten southern terminus of the Western Front. German concrete bunkers built to last for years. French fieldworks that vanished into the forest. Swiss observation posts watching both sides from neutral ground. And the boundary stone that marked where three nations met – and where the war could go no further.

This wasn't Verdun. This wasn't the Somme. This was a "quiet sector." But 119,000 soldiers are buried in the cemeteries of this region. The quiet sectors tell a different kind of story.

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IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER:

This video documents the Kilometer Zero battlefield at Pfetterhouse, Alsace, France – the southern terminus of the Western Front. This ground witnessed the service and sacrifice of German, French, Swiss, and soldiers from many nations who held this line for four years. The experiences of all individuals who served here deserve our respect.

These battlefields are protected historical sites under French heritage law. All artifacts remain undisturbed: Under French law, removing ANY battlefield artifacts (even a button or shell fragment) is punishable by significant fines and potential imprisonment. These items are protected historical heritage and memorial to those who fell here.

Please treat these sites with the respect they deserve. Walk the marked trails, observe but do not disturb, and leave these landscapes as you found them.
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TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Intro
01:54 - History of Alsace
04:40 - The Battle of Alsace 1914
06:27 - The German Front Line
12:00 - German Positions
17:44 - Infantry Bunker
20:58 - The southernmost German Position
24:00 - The Swiss Positions
27:45 - Swiss Observation Post
29:45 - KM ZERO
34:19 - The French Side
36:23 - Railway Bridge & French positions
40:18 - The southernmost French Position
43:54 - Closing Words
46:12 - The Cost
46:54 - Outro
47:23 - Bonus
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SOURCES & CREDITS:

Maps:
Google Earth Studio
Stellungskarte, 8. Landwehr-Division, Altkirch, 1:25,000 (August 1916) - Vermessungs-Abteilung 13 (Württ.), Bundesarchiv Freiburg, PH 3-KART/4905
Map of the Western Front - Funk and Wagnalls Company / Matthews-Northrup Works, Buffalo, NY. Courtesy Harry S. Truman Library & Museum, Independence, Missouri
File: 1870 Bacon's large scale war map, Paris to the Rhine - Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain
Images of Alsace Maps: Wikimedia Commons - Public Domain

Archival Photographs:
All photographs from Europeana 1914-1918, Europe - CC BY-SA:
Beide Grossvaeter im Krieg
Leo Belz - Westfront (1916)
Fotos und Militärpass von Karl Hutterer (1920)
Hilsen fra Laust i Alsace - Laust Jensen
Konvolut Georg Horling (1914)
WINTZENHEIM 14-18: la Grande Guerre dans une petite ville d'Alsace (1913)
FRAD076_0274: Daniel et Joseph Bazile, Jules Duclos, Honoré Levasseur (1914)
FRAD071-097: Jean-Marie LAROCHE
Soldats dans une tranchée
Poste de secours
Soldats devant une tombe
August Nobel - Soldatenbild (1914)
FRAD067-167: Franz Xavier Host, Alsacien engagé dans l'armée allemande

Swiss Military & Fortifications:
All images: Wikimedia Commons - Public Domain

Archival Film Footage:
"Wie Frankreich das Elsaß befreit" (1917) - Bundesarchiv, Germany - Public Domain
"En Artois. Le Drapeau de Chasseurs" (1915) - DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum, Germany - Public Domain
Cinematek 14065 ARMEE-FRANCAISE - Public Domain
"Vogesenwacht" (1917) - Bundesarchiv, Germany - Public Domain
"Infanterie-Nahkampf" (1918) - Bundesarchiv, Germany - Public Domain

Location Information:
Circuit du Kilomètre Zéro - 7.5km marked trail : 47°30'28.1"N, 7°11'47.2"E
Pfetterhouse, Haut-Rhin, Alsace, France

Free access, maintained paths, information panels in French/German/English
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© 2025 WalkingTheTrenches. All original footage filmed by me. Archival materials used under Public Domain or CC BY-SA licenses as noted. Please respect copyright and battlefield heritage laws.