Brandhoek Cemetery is the place where Captain Noel Chavasse was laid to rest. Captain Chavasse is one of just three men to have been granted Britain's top medal for bravery, the Victoria Cross. In addition, he was also accorded the Military Cross. I'm presently reading a book entitled "In Foreign Fields" by Dan Collins and it is about troops who have been granted medals in Afghanistan and Iraq. When you realise exactly what a soldier needed to achieve in order to be accorded an MC, it truly makes you comprehend what a bold man Capt Chavasse was especially as he was a member of the Royal Medical Corps and never fired a shot during the war.
My next stop was near to the village of Passchendaele at the largest sized British Military Cemetery at Tynecot. Over 12,000 troopers lie buried here. From the cemetery, it's possible to see for some miles in all directions over fields and it seems hard to think about the carnage that was there 90 years ago. The visitors centre gives a profile of the region and the names of some of the dead and missing are broadcast calmly over speakers.
From Tynecot, I started to head back on the way to Ypres stopping at Hill 61 (Sanctuary Wood) on the way back. There's a compact museum and a few conserved trenches . Throughout my trip, the climate wasn't kind and while it had been nothing like as lousy as conditions would have been all through The Great War, the bottom of the trenches still looked quite awful. It cost a few Euros to get in and this was the first place I started to notice the effects of the notorious mud.
My next intended stop was the Hooge Crater. As previously in the day, I had a hard time trying to locate it although I did find a modest independent museum known as the Hooge Crater Museum which in fact had an intriguing assortment of artefacts such as a British Ambulance and a Victoria Cross. My sightseeing for the day was not complete as I still wanted to check out the popular Cloth Hall that was just about ruined (since totally reconstructed) and the Last Post ceremony which is carried out at 8pm every evening at the Menin Gate. I always find the Last Post extremely haunting and moving to hear. After it was finished, 2 wreaths were placed by young British soldiers and was followed by a recital from Laurence Binyon's "For The Fallen"
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.
My next stop was near to the village of Passchendaele at the largest sized British Military Cemetery at Tynecot. Over 12,000 troopers lie buried here. From the cemetery, it's possible to see for some miles in all directions over fields and it seems hard to think about the carnage that was there 90 years ago. The visitors centre gives a profile of the region and the names of some of the dead and missing are broadcast calmly over speakers.
From Tynecot, I started to head back on the way to Ypres stopping at Hill 61 (Sanctuary Wood) on the way back. There's a compact museum and a few conserved trenches . Throughout my trip, the climate wasn't kind and while it had been nothing like as lousy as conditions would have been all through The Great War, the bottom of the trenches still looked quite awful. It cost a few Euros to get in and this was the first place I started to notice the effects of the notorious mud.
My next intended stop was the Hooge Crater. As previously in the day, I had a hard time trying to locate it although I did find a modest independent museum known as the Hooge Crater Museum which in fact had an intriguing assortment of artefacts such as a British Ambulance and a Victoria Cross. My sightseeing for the day was not complete as I still wanted to check out the popular Cloth Hall that was just about ruined (since totally reconstructed) and the Last Post ceremony which is carried out at 8pm every evening at the Menin Gate. I always find the Last Post extremely haunting and moving to hear. After it was finished, 2 wreaths were placed by young British soldiers and was followed by a recital from Laurence Binyon's "For The Fallen"
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.
About the Author:
The key part of most visits to Ypres is the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate each evening at 8pm.. This article, One Day In The Area Close to Ypres is released under a creative commons attribution license.
