Etaples Cemetary

yamonda1

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• Sep 9, 2008

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I always visit this place on my way back to the ferry/train and yesterday morning the weather allowed a few pics. It's the largest cemetary at almost 12,000 graves and all the old regiments are here including, like me, a few you've probably never heard of.
It is for me a humbling experience to see here the sacrifice of a generation and the care with which they are looked after.

 

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yamonda1

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• Sep 9, 2008

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More 'Eat Apples' pics

Some of the individual graves.

For some reason the Hindu's are set apart and then all alone is a single man from the Chinese Labour Corps, this solitary man buried in France with his family probably never knowing his fate.

 

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Greg Masters

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• Sep 9, 2008

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It's a few years since I've been there (which is shameful as it is so close to the Channel ports).

The scale of the cemetery certainly touches on the scale of the war and waste of life on both sides.



Greg

 

Greg Masters

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• Sep 9, 2008

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This picture is interesting.

It seems that the Church of Scotland's Guild established 25 centres, manned by 350 workers, in France and Flanders. Margaret Nisbet was an Attendant in one of these centres where she would have provided succour to the troops.

Greg

 

yamonda1

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• Sep 10, 2008

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You saved me some of the work already Greg, when I get the chance I am going to look up the Churches Hut group also Major Reynolds and the Chinese Labour Corps, presumabley they did the earthworks and similar ....

 

moto1527

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• Sep 15, 2008

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WE stayed in Vlamertinge nr Ypres in June, went to the Menin Gate ceremony which was packed, apparantly it always is. What touched me the most was the sheer scale of the thing , 200 000 names on the gate, all uk or commonwealth and, this is the choker, those are just the ones they couldn't find.

Very sobering.


I would like to see more of the WW1 sites if anyone is going next year.

Moto

 

sss

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• Sep 15, 2008

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yamonda1 said:

Chinese Labour Corps, presumabley they did the earthworks and similar ....

Click to expand...

i seem to recall they were brought in at the end of the war to restore flat and level terrain, although many got killed due to the unexploded ordnance that was laying about, although i do stand to be corrected.

 

yamonda1

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• Sep 15, 2008

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Maybe but the headstone shown above showed he died in Sept '17 ...

As with the Scottish Churches Huts I want to find out more about these people and their circumstances ...

I've been to the Menin Gate during daytime and that was moving enough and I can imagine it must be very emotional in the evening ...