Alsace-Moselle Memorial, Memory space and museum in Schirmeck, France.

The Alsace-Moselle Memorial is a memory space and museum in Schirmeck presenting regional history through exhibits and reconstructions spanning from 1870 to today. The location documents how wars and border shifts affected local people and communities directly.

Between 1871 and 1945, the Alsace-Moselle region changed hands between Germany and France, with residents experiencing repeated shifts in their official nationality. These upheavals left deep marks on the area's history and collective memory.

The space shows how local residents maintained their sense of belonging through decades of shifting borders and rule. You can see how these changes shaped daily life and the way people understood who they were.

The museum sits on the slope of Schirmeck, halfway between Strasbourg and Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, close to the former Natzweiler-Struthof camp. The entrance is marked by a sign reading "BIENVENUE AU MEMORIAL DE L'ALSACE MOSELLE" beneath the projecting grey roof. About 50,000 people visit each year, nearly 30,000 of them school pupils, so mornings can be busy with groups.

The site is being expanded with a new section honoring the more than 42,000 people from the region who died or went missing during World War II. This addition recognizes those whose individual stories might otherwise remain untold.