Tunisia's World War Two Cemeteries: French, Italian & Commonwealth (Takrouna, Enfidha, Enfidaville)
Today we are in Sousse Governorate to tour some historic grave sites, mainly from World War Two. We visit the Cimetière Militaire Français and the Italian Parachute Regiment "Folgore" memorial, both in Takrouna. We then head down the road to Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville) to find the civilian cemetery, which is filled with the graves of Italian colonists from the late 18th and early 19th century. We end the tour in the Commonwealth War Grave site of Enfidaville, which contains 1,551 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 88 of them unidentified. ⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️ 0:00 - Intro 0:25 - French military cemetery in Takrouna 2:28 - Italian Parachute Regiment "Folgore" memorial in Takrouna 2:56 - Civilian cemetery in Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville), filled with Italian colonial graves 4:29 - Commonwealth War Grave site in Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville) An extract from the excellent Commonwealth War Graves Commission website explains the significance of this area during World War Two: "In May 1943, the war in North Africa came to an end in Tunisia with the defeat of the Axis powers by a combined Allied force. The campaign began on 8 November 1942, when Commonwealth and American troops made a series of landings in Algeria and Morocco. The Germans responded immediately by sending a force from Sicily to northern Tunisia, which checked the Allied advance east in early December. Meanwhile, in the south, the Axis forces defeated at El Alamein were withdrawing into Tunisia along the coast through Libya, pursued by the Allied Eighth Army. By mid April 1943, the combined Axis force was hemmed into a small corner of north-eastern Tunisia and the Allies were grouped for their final offensive. The Eighth Army attack on the position at Enfidaville on 19 April captured the village, but strong resistance meant no further progress was possible. Attacks further north met with greater success and Tunis fell on 7 May, Bizerta on the 8th. By 11 May, the position at Enfidaville was surrounded at resistance ceased on the following day. Most of those buried at Enfidaville War Cemetery died in the final battles from March to the beginning of May. The cemetery contains 1,551 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 88 of them unidentified." https://www.cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemeteries-memorials/cemetery-details/2008800/ENFIDAVILLE%20WAR%20CEMETERY/ You can also follow my adventures on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oscarscafidi/ Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ScafidiTravels AND https://twitter.com/BradtTunisia You can buy my Bradt Travel Guidebooks to Angola, Equatorial Guinea and (eventually) Tunisia, using this link: https://www.bradtguides.com/author/oscar-scafidi/ Buy my Kayak The Kwanza book here (with 25% of profits donated to The HALO Trust): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kayak-Kwanza-Oscar-Scafidi/dp/1789650127/ OR https://unbound.com/books/kayak-the-kwanza/ Watch my adventure documentary Kayak The Kwanza FREE using this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIfnrQJVDVo&t cwgc,commonwealth war graves commission,Tunisia,Tunisie,tunisia travel,travel tunisia,travel to tunisia,World War 2,World War II,North Africa Campaign,Operation Torch,discover tunisia,North Africa,remembrance,remembrance day,remembrance day 2020,military cemetery,war cemetery,war cemetery tunisia,war cemetery north africa,history of north africa,history of tunisia,Africa,Folgore,paracadutisti,Italians in Tunisia,Italians in North Africa,Italia,Italiani
Today we are in Sousse Governorate to tour some historic grave sites, mainly from World War Two. We visit the Cimetière Militaire Français and the Italian Parachute Regiment "Folgore" memorial, both in Takrouna. We then head down the road to Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville) to find the civilian cemetery, which is filled with the graves of Italian colonists from the late 18th and early 19th century. We end the tour in the Commonwealth War Grave site of Enfidaville, which contains 1,551 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 88 of them unidentified. ⏱️TIMESTAMPS⏱️ 0:00 - Intro 0:25 - French military cemetery in Takrouna 2:28 - Italian Parachute Regiment "Folgore" memorial in Takrouna 2:56 - Civilian cemetery in Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville), filled with Italian colonial graves 4:29 - Commonwealth War Grave site in Enfidha (formerly Enfidaville) An extract from the excellent Commonwealth War Graves Commission website explains the significance of this area during World War Two: "In May 1943, the war in North Africa came to an end in Tunisia with the defeat of the Axis powers by a combined Allied force. The campaign began on 8 November 1942, when Commonwealth and American troops made a series of landings in Algeria and Morocco. The Germans responded immediately by sending a force from Sicily to northern Tunisia, which checked the Allied advance east in early December. Meanwhile, in the south, the Axis forces defeated at El Alamein were withdrawing into Tunisia along the coast through Libya, pursued by the Allied Eighth Army. By mid April 1943, the combined Axis force was hemmed into a small corner of north-eastern Tunisia and the Allies were grouped for their final offensive. The Eighth Army attack on the position at Enfidaville on 19 April captured the village, but strong resistance meant no further progress was possible. Attacks further north met with greater success and Tunis fell on 7 May, Bizerta on the 8th. By 11 May, the position at Enfidaville was surrounded at resistance ceased on the following day. Most of those buried at Enfidaville War Cemetery died in the final battles from March to the beginning of May. The cemetery contains 1,551 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 88 of them unidentified." https://www.cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemeteries-memorials/cemetery-details/2008800/ENFIDAVILLE%20WAR%20CEMETERY/ You can also follow my adventures on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oscarscafidi/ Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ScafidiTravels AND https://twitter.com/BradtTunisia You can buy my Bradt Travel Guidebooks to Angola, Equatorial Guinea and (eventually) Tunisia, using this link: https://www.bradtguides.com/author/oscar-scafidi/ Buy my Kayak The Kwanza book here (with 25% of profits donated to The HALO Trust): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kayak-Kwanza-Oscar-Scafidi/dp/1789650127/ OR https://unbound.com/books/kayak-the-kwanza/ Watch my adventure documentary Kayak The Kwanza FREE using this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIfnrQJVDVo&t cwgc,commonwealth war graves commission,Tunisia,Tunisie,tunisia travel,travel tunisia,travel to tunisia,World War 2,World War II,North Africa Campaign,Operation Torch,discover tunisia,North Africa,remembrance,remembrance day,remembrance day 2020,military cemetery,war cemetery,war cemetery tunisia,war cemetery north africa,history of north africa,history of tunisia,Africa,Folgore,paracadutisti,Italians in Tunisia,Italians in North Africa,Italia,Italiani