Thread: Easo's battle field tour, with pics.

This was a good part of the day, this bloke was scaring the buggery out of the school girls firing off blanks.


Sadly the bloke who ownes this place is making a mint off the visitors. None of the profits look like they are making back into preserving the colection.





This was the first aid post, the closest to the line only a few hunderd yards.


This is one of 2 german cemeterys. There are over 42,000 men in here. Each stone has the remains of 4 -16 men under them. In the middle of the yard is a mass grave half the size of a tenis court thats has 25,000 men in it. And two brits. The concret box is one of three pill boxes. That were part of hundreds that made the line.


More to follow,

Great Pic's mate..!!!

Hope you having a great time and doing the best a colonial boy can do!

Right moving on to Tyne Cemertry. This is the biggest one with the war graves comishion WGC. The WGC has over 21,000 sites the world over. The first pic looks back over the head stones over what was the battle field of Paschendale. This was the 'hill' they were taking. The areal photos of the time show the area looking like the surface of the moon. There are 12,000 graves.




This head stone is of Capt Jeffries VC. Behind the stone is the pillbox he captured! He survived then went on to take a second and was killed.

On to The Meien Gate. Quite a calm/ relaxed attmosphere. They hold a service here every single day. The bulges play last post at 1800 and reef layer are invited forward. The New Zealander are not mentioned here, but are at Tyne.




Well my last pic was the only one I found in bloom as the season is just starting.


Cheers All,

Easo

You arn't going near Harbonnieres are you?

My wife's great uncle is buried at Tyne Cot. He was 41 Bn. gassed at Passchaendale, 8/10/17. His brother, wife's grandfather, was there also, A sapper, 4th. Field Coy. RAE. He was badly affected by gas and did not make old bones, died at 60. Apparently had a lot of psych. problems after the war for the rest of his life like many returned men.

My grandfather was a tunneller when first posted to France, 4th. Dvn. Headquarters Tunnelling Coy, and then to the infantry, 52 BN. and transferred to 49 Bn. on 11/5/18 when the greatly depleted 4th. Dvn. had a number of battalions combined to restore numbers. He was wounded 7/6/17 and 28/9/17. His, eldest son, my Uncle Karl was an Anzac, at Gallipoli with the 1st. Dvn. Ammunition Supply Column, and after 18 months in military hospitals was returned to action in France in 4th. Dvn. Ammunition Supply Column.

thanks mate, awesome photos.

Great Pics, easo. Thanks for posting them.

I've just finished a biography on Monash. He believed that the individual acts of bravery made the difference in bogged down combat; almost to the point of relying upon such spontaneous acts as part of later battle plans to take the Hindenburg Line. It was his opinion that the germans were too ordered (he was german born himself) and were intially stunned by individual acts.

He also said the English were determined and brave, but very poorly led; and that the americans were badly trained.

good stuff mate,


john