No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

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ollaetta
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No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#1

Post by ollaetta » 08 Oct 2018, 23:20

I wonder if anyone can help me identify the attached WW1 plaque/plate.

It's made of metal and measures approx 6 inches by 4 inches. I've googled "on ne passe pas" and I found several badges with it referring to the Maginot Line but nothing like this. It belonged to the late father of a work colleague who kindly showed it to me.
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John G.
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#2

Post by John G. » 09 Oct 2018, 01:05

Ollaetta,
Souvenir plaque commemorating the Battle of Verdun..... the "thoroughfare" being the road to Paris for the Germans, and "On me passe" being the French motto for stopping them..... The battle caused over a million kia/WIAs on both sides.... The British/American involvement happen much later (if at all) and are probably added to make it have a wider appeal to potential buyers postwar.

Certainly of collector interest, probably of modest collector value.
John G.


Eugen Pinak
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#3

Post by Eugen Pinak » 09 Oct 2018, 10:28

ollaetta wrote:
08 Oct 2018, 23:20
I wonder if anyone can help me identify the attached WW1 plaque/plate.
British uniform clearly show, that this is WW II item. Probably 1939-1940 period.

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ollaetta
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#4

Post by ollaetta » 10 Oct 2018, 20:14

Thanks for the replies. I will relay that interesting opinion on the British uniform to the owner of the plaque.

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von thoma
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#5

Post by von thoma » 12 Oct 2018, 22:54

?????
" The right to believe is the right of those who don't know "

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Loïc
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#6

Post by Loïc » 13 Oct 2018, 00:38

agree that is maybe more 1939-1940 than anything else,

there is like a Maginot line turret in the French right background,

the flowers seem both post-Great War symbols : Commonwealth red poppies and French blue bleuets de France

the fact is that there are only French and British allied represented, a WWI item used to celebrate many more : Belgian, Russian...

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Max
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#7

Post by Max » 13 Oct 2018, 09:14

"On ne passe pas "
is usually translated as
"They shall not pass"


https://www.ebay.ie/itm/1918-World-War- ... 1cbbde556c

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Greetings from the Wide Brown.

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von thoma
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#8

Post by von thoma » 14 Oct 2018, 01:13

It's true that the presentation on the plaque is confusing.
But the motto "On ne passe pas" is more asociated traditionally with "Verdun" combats.
Certainly, the British soldier has WWII trousers and he don't wears putties, but details, like fixed bayonets in both soldiers,
barbed wires, gas mask bag in British soldier breast, there was also many "Forts" in Verdun sector with turrets ( Fort Douaumont, Fort Vaux ),
plaque shows French and British solidarity, all these things lead me to the WW I.
I don't think they were trying to represent a World War II event.
" The right to believe is the right of those who don't know "

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Loïc
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Re: No Thoroughfare - On ne passe pas plaque

#9

Post by Loïc » 14 Oct 2018, 02:03

I think you need a french eye, not a spanish or an anglo-saxon prism

first On ne pas passe pas yes Verdun, but was also and mainly the general motto for Maginot Line
Image

second you don't pay attention to both post-Great War symbolic flowers, I am sure we have the red poppies and bleuets de France


third Verdun is a very franco-french-gallic battle and event in the French memory and it is something certainly not at all we wished to share with any other nation or army beginning especially by the British who had nothing to see here in the French memory while they had totally pre-empted the "Somme"

in the Great War the great ally for the French was Russia and had many more allied in this conflict British, Belgians, Serbians, Italians

in 1939 the French and British were alone...
you have many items, documents, artefacts etc of that kind trying to celebrate and emphasise the British participation with the French Army as they are the last and only country still allied with France

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