Ypres and the Battles of Ypres Part 15

In October, 1914, it saw the close of the fighting which concluded the "race to the sea," and the stabilising of the front here resulted in more than six months' continuous fighting.

A little later, the Artois offensive of 1915 found an echo in local operations for the possession of key positions like Festubert and Neuve-Chapelle, giving rise to sanguinary struggles without decisive result for either side.

Finally, in 1918, it was the scene of the third great German offensive for the conquest of the Hills (see pp. 38--43.)

=Bethune=

The foundation in 984 of the Collegiate Church of St. Bartholomew, by Robert I., ancestor of Sully, is the first mention of Bethune in history. The town, owned in turn by the Counts of Flanders, the Dukes of Burgundy, and the House of Austria, annexed to France at the Peace of Nimegue in 1678, taken in 1710 by the Triple Alliance, was finally restored to France in 1713 by the Treaty of Utrecht.

A fraternity, called the "Confrerie des Charitables," still survives.

Founded after the plague of 1188 by two blacksmiths, to whom St. Eloi appeared in a vision, asking them to a.s.sist their fellow-countrymen who were dying unsuccoured, it performed the burial rites of the dead.

During the Great War the town was intermittently bombarded for three and a half years, but from the end of February, 1918, to April 21 the violence of the sh.e.l.ling increased tenfold, and on the latter date the civil population had to be evacuated, the battle having carried the German lines within two miles of Bethune.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE, _from an old engraving_]

On April 13--18 the bombardment became so intense that the town was almost razed to the ground.

The officials and the miners of the district were mentioned in Orders of the Day for their courage and endurance.

At first sight, the town does not seem to have suffered so much, but this impression soon pa.s.ses.

The Grande Place (photo, p. 126) where the chief beauties of this small town were concentrated, is now a heap of bricks and stones.

The old houses have fallen in; only the facade of one of them (No. 44), dating from the 16th century, remains, and even this one was severely damaged and is now supported by wooden props.

Of the modern Hotel-de-Ville there remains only a small portion of the facade (photo, p. 127), whilst the Savings Bank on the left is a shapeless ruin.

The belfry, built in 1346 and restored forty years later, is still standing, but the upper portion of it has disappeared, and the houses which surrounded it have fallen in.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE. THE GRANDE PLACE. _Before the War._ (_Cliche LL._)]

Its tower is standing, as far as the upper part of the sun-dial, whilst the four admirable gargoyles which project at the corners, and the graceful curve of the pointed windows of its first storey, escaped injury.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE. THE GRANDE PLACE. _After the Bombardments_]

The remains of the spiral staircase leading to the top may still be seen, but the 15th century wooden spire has gone.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE. RUINS OF THE HoTEL-DE-VILLE]

This spire contained a peal of bells, one of which, dated 1576, was called "La Joyeuse."

"La Joyeuse" is silenced for ever.

This peal gave its name to the street behind the belfry, which leads to the Church of St. Waast (1533--1545), whose ma.s.sive tower was more than half-a-century later than the rest of the building.

_To leave the town, return from the Grande Place to the Place de la Republique_ (in June, 1917, it was impossible to take the Rue d'Arras, which is the direct road, all this part of the town being obstructed by ruins).

[Ill.u.s.tration: RUINS OF ST. WAAST CHURCH]

_In the Place de la Republique take the Boulevard Victor-Hugo on the right, and then Rue Marcelin-Berthelot, also on the right. At the cross-roads take the Rue de Lille to the left._ The Faubourg de Lille suffered severely from the bombardment. _Take N. 41 alongside the Aire Ca.n.a.l._

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE. RUE D'ARRAS, BEFORE KULTUR'S BLIGHT FELL ON IT.

(_Cliche LL._) (_See below_)]

[Ill.u.s.tration: BeTHUNE. RUE D'ARRAS--WHAT THE GERMAN Sh.e.l.lS LEFT OF IT (_see above_)]

[Ill.u.s.tration: DESTROYED BRIDGE ACROSS THE Ba.s.seE]

For four years the fighting never ceased in this region. _Leave the Festubert sector on the right._ Throughout the struggle, the Canadians fought so bravely that one of their recruiting posters was dedicated to the heroes of Festubert, with this inscription:

"Oui, vous avez raison, c'est hideux le carnage, Oui, le progres blesse recule et se debat, Notre siecle en fureur retourne au moyen age, Mais sachons donc nous battre, au moins, puisqu'on se bat."

_At the crossing of N. 41 and 43 leave the latter on the right._

_Cross the Grande Rue d'Annequin._ From here, on the right, coalpit No.

9 can be seen, with its wrecked machinery in the air--a ma.s.s of twisted ironwork.

_The ruined village of_ =Cambrin= _is next pa.s.sed through. On the other side of the level-crossing, leave on the right the badly damaged village of_ =Auchy-lez-La-Ba.s.see=. _The road now follows the ca.n.a.l._ After crossing the railway (l. c.) vast heaps of broken railway trucks smashed by the sh.e.l.ls can be seen in the fields on the right. Further on are eight or nine blockhouses which were formerly brick-kilns. _Turn to the left, cross the railway, then the Aire Ca.n.a.l by the new suspension bridge_ (beside the old one shown in the photograph) _and enter_ =La Ba.s.see=, _now a heap of ruins_.

La Ba.s.see, an important centre standing at the junction of several roads and railways, in the heart of the plain of Flanders, south-west of Lille, was the objective of many desperate struggles during the war.

In October, 1914, the district of La Ba.s.see was the scene of endless conflicts between the Allied and enemy cavalry forces, the little town finally remaining in the hands of the Germans.

A year later, the British offensive in Artois drove back the Germans south of La Ba.s.see, whilst to the north the positions of Neuve-Chapelle and Aubers were bitterly disputed. However, the lines s.h.i.+fted but little, and La Ba.s.see still remained in the centre of the line of fire.

[Ill.u.s.tration: LA Ba.s.seE, _from an old engraving_]

During the German offensive of 1918, the town again came inside the German lines, but the enemy were driven out shortly afterwards, during the Allied offensive that led to the Armistice and to the consummation of victory.

_Go through the Rue d'Estaires_, in which there is a large and very high armoured shelter that served as an observation-post. _Pa.s.s the ruined church_ (photo, p. 132), _then turn to the right into the Grande Place_.

Inside a three-storied house, which later collapsed under the sh.e.l.l-fire (photo, p. 132), there was a German observation-post of concrete, armed with machine-guns.

_On leaving La Ba.s.see continue along N. 41_, with its fine trees cut down and left along the sides of the road. _Pa.s.s the first houses of_ =Illies= _village, on the left, and 100 yards further on, cross a large avenue_ (_leading to the Chateau de Varneton_).

[Ill.u.s.tration: LA Ba.s.seE. STREET CAMOUFLAGED BY THE GERMANS (_Note the high poles on the left._)]

[Ill.u.s.tration: LA Ba.s.seE. RUE D'ESTAIRES BEFORE THE WAR (_Compare with photo below._)]

On the right, and connected with _N. 41_ by a small bridge, there is a large German cemetery with a monument to the memory of the soldiers of the XVth Regiment (Prinz Friedrich) (photo, p. 133).

_The road leads to_ =Fournes=, _the outskirts of which are crossed by Rue Pasteur_. Pa.s.s an avenue of fine trees leading to the Chateau of Comte d'Hespel, accidentally burned down.

At the cross-roads there is a bandstand erected by the Germans. A crude painting on the back of the stand represents a tug-of-war between a German and British, French and American soldiers, in which the German wins apparently with ease. Italy, depicted as a monkey, is seen clinging to the rope.

After turning to the right the road pa.s.ses the large Gambert Boarding School, which was severely damaged. Behind it is a large cemetery.