After enlisting in October 1914, Guillaume Apollinaire went to the Champagne front the following year, before finally being sent to the Bois des Buttes, near the village of Pontavert in the Aisne region, where he was hit in the temple by shrapnel in March 1916.Convalescing in the rear, he published his famous collection “Calligrammes” in 1918, from which a few verses were extracted by the author Yves Gibeau, who was behind the creation of this commemorative stele in 1990, to be erected not far from the spot where he received his wound, with this dedication:
“En ce lieu dit / Le Bois des Buttes / Le 17 mars 1916 fut blessé / Guillaume / APOLLINAIRE / 1880-1918”.
Note that in 2025, the stele was moved to facilitate access to its surroundings (to reach it, on leaving the commune of La Ville-aux-Bois-Lès-Pontavert, take the direction of Pontavert, the monument will be on your right).