The Friends of Compiègne are the town twinning group for the twinning between Bury St. Edmunds in England and Compiègne in France.
We have been twins since 1968. The twinning is active and we have been exchanging members ever since. The exchange on an annual/biannual basis; One year we visit Compiègne, the next they visit us.
Compiègne is a university town in the Oise department of northern France, around 50 miles north of Paris. Historically it has one of the best chateaus in France, originally built in 1374 for the French Kings. It is also the place where Joan of Arc was captured during the 100 Years War.
What many people will know is that the Forest of Compiègne is the site of the ‘Armistice Clearing’ where both the treaty ending the First World War was signed in November 1918 and where Hitler accepted France’s surrender, in June 1940, during the Second World War.
Wagon in the ‘Armistice Clearing’