Built upon the initiative of His Grace Ginisty, Bishop of Verdun, Douaumont Ossuary was inaugurated on 7th August 1932 by the President of the French Republic, Albert Lebrun.

On the 137m-long façade, the shields of each town or city having helped built the Ossuary can be seen. Its 46m-high tower averlooks the entire battlefield.

The cloister consists of 22 cavities each containing 46 granite graves. Each grave represents a sector of the battlefield and contains the remains found in this sector.

At each end of the cloister is a 350m3 vault to contain the excess remains of sectors having endured heavy losses.

In front of the Ossuary, Douaumont military cemetery contains the graves of 15,000 identified French soldiers.