In this episode, Heather A. Warfield speaks with her co-editors, Stéphane Michonneau and Franck Viltart, about their new book, “Pilgrimages to the Western Front of World War I: Historical Exemplars & Contemporary Practices.” They talk about the book structure which is focused on the sites, actors, and practices of pilgrimages to the former battlefields, military cemeteries, and monuments. They discuss their October 2023 academic conference in Château-Thierry, France, from which the chapters were drawn. And, they address the differences between tourists and pilgrims and explore the challenges associated with notions of dark pilgrimage, dark tourism, and dark heritage. The episode also offers a glimpse into each book chapter and considers areas for future exploration. Psychology of Pilgrimage host, Dr. Heather A. Warfield, is a researcher, professor, and specialist of pilgrimage studies, with research focused on the psychology of pilgrimages. She is the series editor of Pilgrimage Studies (Peter Lang), co-editor of Pilgrimages to the Western Front of World War I: Historical Exemplars & Contemporary Practices, and editor of Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Pilgrimage: Historical, Current and Future Directions. In addition to academic publications, she has written articles about contemporary battlefield pilgrimages for US military publications and serves as a battlefield pilgrimage expert for military staff rides and other related educational programs.
Stéphane Michonneau is a professor at the University of Paris-Est Créteil. He has worked on post-war periods, particularly in Spain and France. He has led a research program on the political and social uses of war ruins (2020-2024).
Franck Viltart is a historian specializing in the heritage and memory of contemporary conflicts. Since 2025, he is director of the World War I Heritage Mission for Western Front Sites inscribed on the World Heritage List.
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