Belgium/Ypres

BELGIUM/YPRES

We arrived in Ypres ( Ieper ) on Sunday 4 March 2012, within two hours our friend Sabine had picked us up at our hotel and driven out into the nearby countryside to our first stop at Mousetrap Farm.

Mousetrap Farm, now a peaceful and calm location. In May 1915 the Second Battle of Ypres was just weeks old and this was the scene of intense and vicious fighting. My Great Grandfather John Owens was here with the 1st East Lancashires and took part in the conflict and on 13 May while attacking the farm he was killed in action. John has no known grave and is remembered on the Menin Gate Memorial in th town of Ypres. John may be one of the unknown soldiers buried in one of the Ypres cemeteries or he may still rest here in these fields. This is where we left the Poppy Cross to remember him. The sadness I felt as I looked out upon the ground where John had died was immense.

Sabine then drove us the short distance to Ferme-Olivier Cemetery in Elverdinghe so we could pay respect to my Great Grandfather John Hogan. John had served as a Gunner with the Royal Garrison Artillery, 299th Siege Battalion. He was killed 24 June 1917 during the 3rd Battle of Ypres.

This cemetery was widely used by Field Ambulances between 9th June 1915 and 5th August 1917, the 62nd, 9th, 11th, 129th and 130th Field Ambulances all being based here during this period. Throughout this time, the village of Elverdinghe, where the cemetery stands, was just within the range of the German Artillery, and a mass grave in Plot II Row E contains the remains of 37 men of the 3rd Bn. Monmouthshire Regiment who were killed whilst on parade by a single shell fired from a naval gun in Houthulst Forest on 29th December 1915. The graves in Plot III run in order of the date of death and show the successive occupations of Elverdinghe Chateau by the 38th (Welsh) Division, the Guards Division and units of the Royal Artillery. ( CWGC information ) John is buried in Plot III

412 Graves are located within the cemetery, 409 British and 3 German. Two of the men were shot at dawn for desertion but rightly pardoned in the last few years. Private G. Watkins, 13th Bn. Welsh Regiment and Private R. Hope, 1st Bn. Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, Rest in peace lads.

John Hogan's grave. The Everton badge? My father died in 2006 and he was a big Everton fan, one of the flowers for his funeral was in the shape of the Everton badge and this badge here was attached. The flowers went on my dads grave then we put them alongside the Dixie Dean statue at Everton's football ground and I removed the badge. In 2007 we visited my Grandfathers grave in Italy, he was killed during WW2, he was my dads father and the son of John above. Grandad was an Evertonian and we put the badge on his grave in Italy before bringing it back home. It was my intention that if I visited John in Belgium then I would place it here and leave it here which I did. I have no idea if John supported Everton but football does not matter as the badge is just my link between my Hogan men.

Ferme-Olivier Cemetery. I was surprised by just how close the places of death where for my two Great Grandfathers.

The Elverdinghe Chateau, located very close to Ferme-Olivier Cemetery. John Hogan and his regiment spent time here in 1917. The original Chateau was destroyed by shell fire but this newer building stands on the same sight.

The Menin Gate Memorial in Ypres. It list the names of 54,409 men who died in the Ypres Salient and whose graves are not known. The memorial was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield with sculpture by Sir William Reid-Dick, it was unveiled on 24 July 1927 by Lord Plumer.

The site for the memorial was chosen because of the hundreds of thousands of men who passed along this road on their way to the front lines of the battlefields. It remembers the casualties from the forces of Australia, Canada, India, South Africa and United Kingdom who died in the Salient.

My Great Grandfather John Owens is listed upon the memorial.

Each night at 8 pm the traffic is stopped at the Menin Gate while members of the local Fire Brigade sound the Last Post in the roadway under the Memorial's arches. This tradition dates back to the opening of the memorial. The Fire Brigade had remained in Ypres with the forces during the war when the locals were evacuated for safety, every night they heard the British play the last post and this is the tribute they gave to them on the night the memorial was unveiled. It was thought so moving that they played it again the following night and the tradition still goes on today.

The Bugler's play the last post

The menin Gate at night. I will add more about the memorial as I go along.

On 5 March I took a tour of Ypres, just me and the guide Karl. It rained for the whole 4 hours, freezing winds and sleet, but nothing was going to stop me and how could I moan after what these guys went through during the war. Due to the weather some of the photos failed or will have marks on them. This tour covered just a few places on the Ypres Salient there is far much more to see, it would take months to see it all.

Next to Essex Farm Cemetery are the remains of a British Advanced Dressing Station. In 1915 this was dugouts cut into the bank with wooden frames. By 1917 it was the concrete structure we see today. The British took over this area from the French in April 1915, only days later the Germans released a gas attack here and the second battle of Ypres began. The Canadians moved their guns up in support and the Canadian field artillery established a small, basic dressing station near Essex Farm to tend to wounded casualties. In May 1915 Canadian Army Doctor Major John McCrae was working here when he saw his good friend Alexis Helmer killed by a shell. McCrae had buried his friend and conducted the service ( 2nd May ) it is here that he wrote the poem " In Flanders Fields " the same evening and later threw it away only for another man to pick it up and read it.

The concrete Advanced Dressing Station next to Essex Farm Cemetery. Spot the slants in the doorways for rolling down thick cloth during gas attacks.

Officers room at the dressing station.

The next room was where the stretcher bearers brought the wounded ( photo never turned out ) Then above is the room where anyone needing surgery was operated on. A truly sad place to stand.

It was raining heavy at Essex farm so some pics failed. The photo above, top by the thick bushes is where the dressing station is located.

Essex Farm Cemetery. 1200 men are buried here, 103 of them unidentified.

The grave of Valentine Joe Strudwick. Named Valentine as he was born 14th Feb. As you will see from the pic he signed up way under age and died aged just 15.

Memorial to The 49th Division at Essex Farm Cemetery. The men from the division served here in 1915 and a number are buried within the cemetery.

                                                  In Flanders fields the poppies blow
                                                  Between the crosses, row on row,
                                                  That mark our place; and in the sky
                                                  The larks, still bravely singing, fly
                                                  Scarce heard amid the guns below.

                                                  We are the Dead. Short days ago
                                                  We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
                                                  Loved and were loved, and now we lie
                                                  In Flanders fields.

                                                  Take up our quarrel with the foe:
                                                  To you from failing hands we throw
                                                  The torch; be yours to hold it high.
                                                  If ye break faith with us who die
                                                  We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
                                                  In Flanders fields.

                                                             John McCrae May 1915

Our next stop was at the Yorkshire Trench near the village of Boezinge. A excavated trench system that has been preserved for the public to see. The trench was discovered in 1992 when a nearby factory was being built. Due to heavy rain a number of my photos failed, but you can read about the trenches by using this link.

http://www.ww1battlefields.co.uk/flanders/yorkshire.html

The Fire Step and Peep Hole

Walking the Duckboards through the trench.

One of the bunkers filled with water.

Steps down into the trench.

Our next stop was the German War Cemetery at Langemark. It is one of only four First World War German cemeteries in the Flanders region and holds 44, 294 German soldiers. For more details about the history of the cemetery use this link.

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/ypres-salient/cemetery-langemark.htm

Around 3,000 of the burials in the cemetery are those of young student volunteers who had died in the Battle of Langemarck in October and November 1914, their names are carved into wooden panels in a room at the entrance.

The Kameraden Grab (Comrades Grave) Over 24,000 unidentified men were buried in this mass grave, over 16,000 of them have now been named. In the background you can see the statue of the Mourning Soldiers.

Ruhe in Frieden Jungen.

Very flooded due to the heavy rain. The Grave markers throughout the cemetery, up to 10 men are buried below each one. Note the three basalt-lava crosses.

Even the cemeteries can not hide the relics of war. Here we see German WW1 bunkers, machine guns would be placed on top to defend from attacks, a formidable obstacle. Notice below how close together they were placed.

When the Allies started shelling the German soldiers would climb down and enter the bunkers through the holes below. Look at the top left corner of the bunker and you will see the chip caused by shelling. These bunkers were solid with a thick steel roof, they gave good protection. It was at Langemark that the Germans first used poison gas on the 22 April 1915.

I left the cemetery glad that I had paid my respects to the German soldiers.

Less than a mile from Langemark at Saint Julien is an area known as Vancouver Corner, here stands the impressive Canadian ' Brooding Soldier ' Memorial. It remembers the Canadian 1st division who held their lines during a gas attack, they suffered over 2,000 casualties. Please use the link below to read more.

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/ypres-salient/memorial-vancouver-corner.htm

On a country lane we found this live shell left out for disposal. The farmer had a stash of shells from what they call the ' Iron Harvest ' All found while ploughing the fields nearby.

Next it was on to Tyne Cot Cemetery and Passchendaele.

There are no words I can write that describe how I felt when I saw the cemetery at Tyne Cot. You can read about the figures but nothing prepares you for the sight of the endless white headstones. It is difficult to take in the sheer number of graves in front of you, it goes beyond sadness.

Please use the link below for more details about Tyne Cot.

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/ypres-salient/cemetery-tyne-cot.htm

Tyne Cot is the largest Commonwealth Cemetery in the world. It contains 11,954 buried servicemen of which 8,367 are unidentified. Another 34,000 men are listed on the Memorial To The Missing at Tyne Cot, their bodies unfound remain on the battlefields of the Salient.

The Cross of Sacrifice sits upon one of the concrete German blockhouses that was used to defend the Ridge, two others remain in the cemetery. It was King George VI who suggested placing the cross on the bunker during a visit to the cemetery in 1922.

The Memorial To The Missing. These walls contain the names of over 34,000 men.

Tyne Cot Cemetery, Passchendaele Ridge. How can we ever forget these guys or what they did.

From the entrance of Tyne Cot cemetery looking down Passchendaele Ridge towards Ypres. Tyne Cot was the site of strong German bunkers, heavily defended with this clear view of the advancing attack. The Flanders mud can be seen, the ground is clay underneath and it floods easily. During the war with the shelling and rain the troops had to fight through all this as well as the Germans. This is the view on a murky rainy day so imagine how clear it could be.

Directly behind Tyne Cot cemetery is this view looking up the ridge towards Passchendaele. Passchendaele is just a small village though it name is as fearsome as The Somme. Many of the men buried at Tyne Cot died on these stretches of land.

Our next call was Polygon Wood to visit Buttes New British Cemetery. Please us the link below to read details about the cemetery.

http://www.ww1battlefields.co.uk/flanders/polygonwood.html

There are 2,108 Commonwealth servicemen of the First World War buried or commemorated in Buttes New British Cemetery. 1,677 of the burials are unidentified but special memorials are erected to 35 casualties known or believed to be buried among them.

The BUTTES NEW BRITISH CEMETERY (NEW ZEALAND) MEMORIAL, which stands in Buttes New British Cemetery, commemorates 378 officers and men of the New Zealand Division who died in the Polygon Wood sector between September 1917 and May 1918, and who have no known grave. ( CWGC information )

As you enter the Cemetery you see the Butte, this was used by the Belgian Army for target practice before the war. On top of the Butte stands the memorial to the Australian 5th Division who took the heavily armed Butte from the Germans in September 1917, sustaining large losses in the process.

At the far right of the cemetery is the New Zealand Memorial to the Missing containing the names of 378 men killed within the area. The New Zealand authorities wanted the memorials to their missing men placed as close to where they died as possible.

Australian graves at Buttes New Cemetery. Details of the Battle of Polygon Wood can be read on the link below.

http://www.polygonwood.com/The%20Battle%20for%20Polygon%20Wood.htm

The graves of 5 Australian soldiers who have been identified in recent years. Private John Hunter is second from the right.

Private John Hunter, Australian Infantry, 49th Bn. John was the first soldier to be identified by the use of DNA. His inscription reads " At rest after being lost for 90 years "
Read the story about John Hunter on the link below.

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/lost-for-90-years-diggers-identified-by-dna/2007/09/04/1188783237546.html

Next to Buttes cemetery is Polygon Wood Cemetery. My photo never turned out. This one is courtesy of Pierre Vandervelden who runs the ' In Memory ' website at http://www.inmemories.com/index.htm

A German concrete Pillbox.

The Pillbox below.

Our last stop was at The Hooge Crater. Now a pretty scenic place but in 1915 it saw total devastation. Tunneling Companies had dug under the German trenches and laid a huge mine, when they detonated it hundreds of German soldiers died in an instant. The Germans hit back here by introducing the Flamethrower into the war. This pond is a result of the detonation.

The tour was over and we drove back along the Menen Road where the soldiers had walked out from Ypres to the front lines.We arrived back at the Menin Gate memorial.

The names cover the memorial everywhere

The tributes never end

Side views of the Menin Gate Memorial

Dutch soldiers pay respect to the dead during the last post ceremony. A lone piper played ' flow'rs o' the forest ' during the tribute, very moving.

So why did it happen at Ypres? It was never meant, the Germans had a 6 week plan to come through Belgium and enter France before taking Paris. When they were stopped they knew they had to take the channel ports and Ypres was in the way. The Belgian Army was able to slow them down thus giving the British valuable time to make the crossing over. Sides dug in and the rest as they say is history. The link below will give you a good idea about the events at Ypres.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~dccfarr/summary.htm

The following photographs are from the town on Ypres which is now known by its Flemish name of Ieper. The British soldiers called Ypres ' Wipers ' The link below gives another good account of the Great War at Ypres.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~dccfarr/

Ypres Reservoir Cemetery is one of two cemeteries located within the town

2,613 men lay buried here, 1,034 of them are unidentified.

The Cross of Sacrifice.

So many of the men remain unidentified, an officer and a soldier above.

Ypres Reservoir Cemetery

We Will Remember Them.

Too young to know, but my son Sam pays his respects to the fallen.

The Ypres Monument. In honour to the Soldiers and civilians of Ypres who were victims of the war. It was from here that the Belgian soldiers left for the front lines. In 2010 a plaque was added to remember the Ypres civilians who died in WW2.

Close to the Menin Gate is the Indian Monument. Dedicated to the Indian troops who saw action around Ypres.

St. George's Church in Ypres. It was built as a lasting memorial to the British and Commonwealth troops who gave their lives in the Great War.

Inside the church you find many dedications to the allied forces. During WW2 the Germans occupied the church, using it as an officers club thus saving it from ruin. The local people had already hidden most of the items from within the church for safe keeping by the time the Germans occupied the town.

The church kneelers have the names of regiments upon them. My wife Sue spotted The King's Liverpool one as soon as she walked into the church.

The Liverpool Pals.

The Nurses of The Great War.

The Liverpool Scottish.

The King's Liverpool Rifles.

So many plaques of dedication are placed around the church.

The window at St George's Memorial Church. For further details about the church please use the link below.

http://www.greatwar.co.uk/ypres-salient/town-ieper-st-georges-church.htm

Ramparts Cemetery next to the Lille Gate, the other cemetry in the town of Ypres. 198 men are buried here, a number from the Cheshire and King's Liverpool regiments. The cemetery lies above the old rampart where troops made dug-outs for safety during the war. The link below gives information about the cemetery and shows a photograph of Australian soldiers using the Rampart dug-outs.

http://www.ww1westernfront.gov.au/ieper/ramparts-cemetery.html

The Cross of Sacrifice.

One of the most beautifully located cemeteries it sits looking out over the water.

Looking at Ramparts Cemetery from across the water.

A wonderful panoramic view of Ramparts cemetery. Courtesy of Chris McDonald.

The Lille Gate and Ramparts, they date from 1385. The Ramparts cemetery is to the left of this photo. Below are old cemetery signs on the wall of the Lille Gate.

The Lille Gate pictured after WW1. I shall return back to the gate soon.

The ramparts that surround the town of Ypres.

The Ramparts were built to fortify Ypres and have lasted hundreds of years. The German shells in WW1 could not destroy them, though they were left in a bad condition and had to be made good. The allied troops made dug-outs within the Ramparts that provided good shelter from the shelling.

The top of the Ramparts have now become a enjoyable walking trail.

Cloth Hall, Ypres. Below being shelled by the German Artillery during the war.

Forgive the terrible photos, awful weather. Looking across the Grote Markt ( Market Square ) at Cloth Hall with St Martins Cathedral behind.

What Cloth Hall looks like when you can get a view. The medievil building was reduced to rubble during the Great War yet they rebuilt it to almost the identical design. The two photos above and below are courtesy of Brad Jermyn.

The fairground and the weather ruined any chance of getting a decent photo and left it impossible to take one of the whole of Cloth Hall. The Photo above is the same area that the troops are in below.

Cloth Hall lays in ruins. It is amazing how they rebuilt it near enough the same.

Around the other side of the stunning Cloth Hall.

Looking towards St Martins Cathedral.

The facade at the side of the cathedral, below you can see it in ruins from the shelling.

Inside the cathedral.

Two more views of the cathedral. Ypres was destroyed by the shelling in WW1 and St Martins Cathedral was reduced to rubble. Although it was rebuilt it is not the same design as before the war.

In the grounds of the cathedral lay these ruins.

These are remains from the old cathedral that was destroyed in WW1. They sit as a reminder of what went before.

The Munster Memorial behind the Cathedral. Sadly David and Nattalie felt a need to add themselves to it.

The model of the Menin Gate memorial.

The models stands up on the Ramparts next to the Menin Gate.

A reconstruction of a wooden house once a familiar sight in Ypres. The town had around 90 such houses before the Great War, of course they were all destroyed.

The front of this house survived the shelling and thankfully was saved during the rebuilding.

The Lille Gate seen from inside the town of Ypres. To the right is the ' t Klein Rijsel ' pub and Ramparts museum.

This guy guards the ' t Klein Rijsel ' pub so no messing around. A wonderful old fashioned pub with a museum at the rear displaying many genuine items from WW1. Please use the link below for further information.

http://rampartswarmuseumypres.com/Engels/pubrng.html