by Janis / 0 comments - Orginally published:7th September 2018

Tracing our poppy pins…

Not the most uplifting post to read, I agree; on the other hand, we have a lot to be grateful for and are indebted to our ancestors and your ancestors, who fought for the freedoms we enjoy today.
 
There were a few reasons why Gary and I wanted to visit Tyne Cot and Passchendaele.
 
Firstly, we both enjoy history and tracing our heritage.
 
However, and more importantly, I don’t think you could visit this region of Europe and not be moved by the sheer enormity of what took place during WWI.
 
As you drive through the Western Front, you’ll be taken aback by the number of cemeteries and war memorials you’ll see along the way, down a side road or in a village.

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A mass of poppy wreaths in front of the Stone fo Remembrance at Tyne Cott Military Cemetery in Belgium
Their Name Liveth for Evermore, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele

Where is Passchendaele?

How to get to Passchendaele

- By Bus
You can catch a bus from Ypres that takes around 30 minutes, and then it's a 10-15 minute walk to the park

- By Car
There is a car park at Palingbeek with the What3Words address of ///tinted.multiplies.forbidding

Remembering the fallen from the battle of Passchendaele

Our remembrance pins
Another reason for our visit was that in 2107, we bought two poppy pins to commemorate Passchendaele, and with each pin, you received a name and the military details of a soldier who died during the Great War. Our soldiers were at Tyne Cot, one in the cemetery and one on the memorial, so we decided to find them.
A close-up of the brass royal british legion passchendaele poppy pin, with a red enamel centre and a green leaf
A close-up of the Passchendaele pin
We have a post on Our Passchendaele Poppy Pins and more details about them.

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The story of the Tyne Cot Cemetery

A brief bit of history
Tyne Cot, or Tyne Cottage, was a barn named by the Northumberland Fusiliers, and the 3rd Australian Division captured the barn on 4 October 1917.
A concrete pillbox at the tyne cot commonwealth war graves cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
A Pillbox, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium
In the grounds of the barn were German Blockhouses or Pillboxes; today, two remain in the cemetery's grounds along the large Blockhouse at the centre, on which the Cross of Sacrifice now stands.
Five poppy wreaths at the base of the cross of sacrifice below a plaque to the 3rd australian division who captured the blockhouse at tyne cot, belgium
Blockhouse below Cross of Sacrifice, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium
By the following March, 343 graves had been created for the fallen, placed irregularly around the Blockhouse. These graves can still be seen where they were first laid.
Five commonwealth war grave headstones in a single plot at the tyne cot cemetery close to the battle of passchendaele in belgium
Buried together, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium
A headstone to two unknown german soldiers at the tyne cot commonwealth war graves cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
A German grave, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium
However, this number grew considerably after the Armistice from the surrounding battlefields. There are nearly 12,000 graves here, and it has become the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery in the world. More than 8,000 of the servicemen are unidentified.
The Commonwealth War Graves Cross of Sacrifice on top of a German bunker in the Tyne Cot cemetery near Passchendaele, Belgium
The Cross of Sacrifice on top of the Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium

Remembering everyone who has fallen

No known grave
Along with the servicemen in the cemetery, there is also the Tyne Cot Memorial in an arc around the top of the cemetery. Inscribed are 34,998 names of the British and New Zealand forces with no known grave, nearly all of whom died between August 1917 and November 1918.
A view over rows of headstones to the memorial wall of the Tyne Cot Memorial in Belgium
Tyne Cot Memorial, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium
Although it is incredibly moving to see so many headstones standing row after row, it was pleasing to see the number of school trips being brought to the memorials & paying their respects.
The full view of the commonwealth war graves tyne cot cemetery, near ypres in flanders, belgium
The full view of the cemetery, Tyne Cot, Passchendaele, Belgium

Where to stay in nearby Ypres

Novotel Ieper Centrum
The hotel is located just a short stroll from the city centre, Cloth Hall and the Menin Gate. This friendly hotel is perfect for touring the surrounding battlefields and war cemeteries and is ideal for a road trip, as they had onsite car parking.

Two Royal British Legion Passchendaele Poppy Pins

Our search
Gary and I set off to find our two Passchendaele pin heroes. The first was Corporal Harry Newson, who served in the 8th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment. He died on 22nd October 1917, age 34.
The card that came with our royal british legion remembrance poppy pin for corporal h newson as part of the every man remembered campaign
Corporal H Newson,Passchendaele Pins
We found Corporal Harry Newson on the Tyne Cot Memorial, which means he is one of the 34,998 soldiers who have no known grave.
corporal harry newson's name on the wall of remembrance at the tyne cot cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
Corporal Harry Newson on the wall of remembrance , Tyne Cot
Our second soldier was Lance Corporal Charles Andrews, who served in the 2nd Battalion, Devonshire Regiment; he died on 31st July 1917 at age 26.
The card that came with our royal british legion remembrance poppy pin for lance corporal c andrews as part of the every man remembered campaign
Lance Corporal C Andrews,Passchendaele Pins
Lance Corporal Charles Andrews is buried in the Tyne Cot Cemetery along with more than 11,900 of his comrades.
The portland stone commonwealth war graves headstone of Lance Corporal C Andrews at the tyne cot cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
The headstone of Lance Corporal C Andrews, Tyne Cot

Touring Flanders Fields

Discover more of Belgium and create your own memories of the Ypres Salient. You can do it all on a road trip, Rental Cars searches multiple well-known car hire brands and discover the deals that suit you the best.

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Attention to detail and the Highest Honour

What I find admirable about the British war graves is that although the headstones are kept immaculate along with the surrounding grounds, the flowers and the shrubs by the graves almost seem to be arbitrary.
 
To me, it gives the feel of an English country garden.

Some purple iris amoungst the commonwealth war grave headstones at the tyne cot cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
Flowers amongst the graves, Tyne Cot
The headstone to Captain Clarence Smith Jeffries - VC, at the tyne cot commonwealth war graves cemetery near passchendaele in belgium
Captain Clarence Smith Jeffries - VC, Tyne Cot

On our way out, as we weave between the rows, we come across a headstone for Captain Clarence Smith Jeffries, who was posthumously decorated with the Victoria Cross for his bravery during the First Battle of Passchendaele.
 
Captain Clarence Smith Jeffries was from the 34th Battalion, Australian Inf. He died on 12th October 1917, at the age of only 23.

Fly into Belgium

Are you looking to find the options to fly into Belgium? Why not check out Booking.Com? Yes, Booking.Com also covers flights.
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Booking.com Search FlightsImage

The Passchendaele Museum

Details of the horrors of war
After our visit to the Tyne Cot cemetery, we head onto the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 to top up with even more WWI knowledge.
The country house that now is now home to the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium, close to the town of ypres
The museum at Passchendaele
The museum in Zonnebeke covers an overview of the five battles of Ypres; however, it mainly focuses on the Third Battle of Ypres, also known as the Battle of Passchendaele.
A display around a field artillery gun at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
Inside the museum at Passchendaele
This battle in 1917 is known as one of the most horrific conflicts of the First World War. As you wander through the museum, you will see interactive videos of survivors giving their heartfelt stories of what they witnessed and the atrocities they saw.

Tourist information

For more information on the imediate region then why not check out the 'de Westhoek' web-site.  Want to look further afield then check out the Visit Flanders site

Experience of the World War One Battlefields

Dingy dugouts and trenches
Throughout the museum are exhibits of equipment used during the war, and a collection of ammunition is on display in all shapes and sizes, bullets, shells and cartridges used by different allies.
Display cabinets full of the many different types and sizes of artillery shells at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
The different shells
Towards the end of your visit, you are guided up some stairs leading out into the museum gardens; however, it differs from what you may have expected.
A recreation of a german world war one trench at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
Inside a trench at Passchendaele
Sandbags on top of the corner of a world war one trench at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
Sandbags on top of the defences
Within the museum grounds, a dugout has been recreated so you can get a tiny insight into the cramped conditions the soldiers existed in. A network of these tunnels was found beneath a nearby church.
looking down on recreated world war one trenches at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
Looking down on the trenches

You can wander through the network of replica trenches and hideouts to understand how narrow, confined, and restricted they would have been.

The trenches exhibit was opened in July 2013 and displays how our enemy and our allies constructed their trenches differently.

British troops used the wooden A-frame structure with corrugated iron.

A recreation of a british world war one trench at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium
A British style trench

The landscape of Passchendaele

Go for a stroll
The museum visit takes around two hours when you’ve finished; it’s pleasant to stroll around the gardens and by the pond in front of the museum and even better if you have a picnic.
The lake at the passchendaele museum at Zonnebeke, Belgium, close to the town of ypres
The lake at the musuem

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Wilfred Owen to the Thiepval Memorial…
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Honouring the sacrifice of ‘their today’
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Remembering Ypres, Belgium

They’re Proud & Honoured to be the bearers …
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Our Passchendaele Poppies

Lest we forget…

Have You?

Visited the poignant region of the Ypres Salient, how was your experience & did you visit Tyne Cot Cemetery?

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