  Ieper
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Tips 1 - 7 of 7 Ieper Things to Do
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The museum is located in the rebuilt Lakenhalle - Cloth Hall of Ieper (Ypres) and was opened in 1998. It tells the story of WW I in and around Ypres from the standpoint of people who experienced the war themselves, the victims.
First victim the town of Ieper which was literally flattened. There was no building higher than one meter left except the Belfry. Second victims were the inhabitants who had been forced to evacuate in May 1915. From then on nobody lived in the ghost town of Ieper. The first inhabitants returned only in 1919 to rebuild their town and lived in wooden emergency houses.
Then there were the soldiers of which 500 thousand died in the battles of the "salient of Ypres".
The "In Flanders Fields" museum is especially based on interactive audiovisual evocations about the life at the front, the battles, trenches, no-man's land, weapons, medical care, fatigue, rest and entertainment behind the front. Pictures, light and sound effects provide a rejuvenated form which explains the success of the museum with annually 200 thousand visitors.
No doubt that this war museum is centred on the human side, I should say inhuman side of WW I which was an ignominious butchery.
The technical aspects, weapons, equipment of WW I are less developed in this museum than in the Army Museum at the Brussels Cinquantenaire or at the British Imperial War Museum in London for example.
Among the technical horrors of WW I, it was at Ypres that chlorine gas was used for the first time as well as flamethrowers in 1915. In July 1917 the almost odourless mustard gas, called Yperite since then, was used here.
It is impossible to leave this museum without feeling deep emotion.
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Phone: +32 (0)57-22 85 82
Directions: The museum is situated on the upper floor of the Cloth Hall (Lakenhalle) in the centre of Ieper (Ypres).
Website: http://www.inflandersfields.be/
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Ce musée situé depuis 1998 dans la magnifique Halle aux Draps d'Ypres est consacré aux victimes de la première guerre mondiale.
D'abord la ville de Ypres dont aucun édifice ne dépassait le mètre à la fin de la guerre à l'exception du beffroi dont ci-joint une photo d'époque. Ensuite les habitants d'Ypres qui à partir de mai 1915 durent abandonner leur ville totalement rasée pour n'y retourner qu'en 1919 pour la reconstruire en habitant provisoirement dans des baraques en bois.
La reconstruction de la halle aux draps ne fut terminée qu'en 1965.
Puis les soldats dont près de 500 mille moururent dans les batailles du saillant d'Ypres.
Le musée est surtout basé sur des évocations audiovisuelles remarquablement bien faites avec des kiosques interactifs qui permettent aux visiteurs d'approfondir certains thèmes.
Le musée est donc surtout axé sur le côté humain plus exactement inhumain de la guerre, pour utiliser le terme juste l'effroyable boucherie que fût la guerre de 1914-1918.
Le côté technique d'armement est moins développé et ici un musée comme le Musée de l'Armée au Cinquantenaire à Bruxelles complète celui d'Ypres.
Notons parmi les horreurs techniques de cette guerre que c'est à Ypres que fût utilisé pour la première fois en avril 1915 le chlore comme gaz de combat, en juillet de cette même année furent utilisés les premiers lance flammes et en juillet 1917 le gaz moutarde appelé Ypérite.
Impossible de ne pas sortir ému de ce musée.
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Phone: +32 (0)57-22 85 82
Directions: The museum is situated on the upper floor of the Cloth Hall (Lakenhalle) in the centre of Ieper (Ypres).
Website: http://www.inflandersfields.be/
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Menin Gate: Welsh Guards at "Last Post".
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Delegations of schools, patriotic and military associations from the countries of the Commonwealth having participated to WW I are generally present at the daily ceremony of Last Post. The calendar of their passage can be found on the site of the association: www.lastpost.be
During our VT meeting in Ypres/Ieper on April 21, 2007 we saw a delegation of recruits of the Welsh Guards (in civilian suits with the red and blue tie of the regiment, pic 2) . The officer leading them was in uniform wearing a cap with the typical badge of a "leek", ancestral Welsh military emblem.
I have a personal gratitude towards the Welsh Guards regiment because they liberated Brussels on Sept. 3, 1944 (see my intro on Belgium).
They left numerous dead on the battlefields of France and Flanders during the Great War. The names of the "missing" are engraved on the walls of the Menin Gate memorial. (pic 3)
The 1st battalion of Welsh Guards was raised in Feb. 1915 and arrived in France in August, 1915. It was part of the Guards Division and participated in 1917 to the battles of Ypres and Passendale.
Approximately 4.050 Welsh Guards participated in the operations from 1915 till November, 1918. Among them 880 were killed, 1.750 were wounded (information by courtesy of Nick Farr, WGO).
At the Menin Gate on this 26.996th "Last Post" ceremony the recruits of the Welsh Guards honoured their predecessors; within some months they will belong to the elite troops on guard at Buckingham Palace, participating at the "Trooping the Colour" wearing the famous red tunic and bearskin (photo 1 by courtesy of WelshGuardsOnline).
They will also be on military operations in various countries.
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Address: End of Menenstraat
Website: http://www.lastpost.be/mainpage.htm
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St. George's Memorial Church was built as a memorial to the thousands of men who died in the three battles of the Ypres Salient.
Field Marshal Sir John French, appealed for a British memorial church to be built here. Land was allocated and planning permission was given by the town of Ieper.
In July 1927, the foundation stone of the church was laid. The church was dedicated for worship in March 1929. It is one of the 13 Anglican churches in Belgium.
Remarkable are the memorial brass plaques dedicated to the memory of regiments, battalions (1000 men in WW I) and individuals.
My photo (pic 2) shows 3 such plaques; one dedicated to a private, an Australian driver, another to a 2nd Lieutenant of the Middlesex regiment and a third to the Coldstream Guards. Many of these memorials plaques were carefully removed during the World War II and replaced afterwards.
Some regimental banners are hanging in the church such as the one of the Queens Westminster Riffles (pic 1). There is also a large window dedicated to the Guards Division (pic 4). The embroidered kneelers on each chair add colour to the church. The chairs have also plaques.
I have always been surprised by the names of British regiments; they are linked to shires, counties, towns, royals. For example on pic 3 "Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry", "Seaforth Highlanders".
This was not the case with names of regiments from France or Belgium. In these allied armies regiments had just a number followed by the type of arm.
For example 60e RI (régiment d'infanterie), 16e RAC (régiment d'artillerie de campagne), for the cavalry the number was followed by Dragons, Hussards, Chasseurs à Cheval.
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Phone: +32 57 215 685
Address: Elverdingsestraat 1
Website: http://netministries.org/see/churches/ch00278
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More Ieper Tips
| Overview | Things to Do
Tips: 7 - Photos: 17 | | Restaurants | Hotels & Accommodations | | Nightlife | Off The Beaten Path | | Tourist Traps | Warnings Or Dangers | | Transportation | Local Customs
Tips: 4 - Photos: 4 | | Packing Lists | Shopping | | Sports Travel | General Tips |
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Join a Discussion Flanders fields site
(4 replies, Sunday, May 25, 2008, 8:33 AM UTC) Zillebeke, Belgium
(2 replies, Monday, Oct 1, 2007, 6:31 PM UTC) Zillebeek
(1 replies, Monday, Oct 1, 2007, 6:51 PM UTC) » All Ieper Posts
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 Comments for breughel about Ieper | | | | |
ranger49 Sat Feb 2, 2008 16:42 UTC
I was very moved by your account of the origins of the Last Post and your Menin Gate pages. I was in Lille in April - next time will visit Ieper. | scottishvisitor Tue Dec 4, 2007 22:16 UTC
The Poppy will always be a symbol of peace and sacrifice | Nemorino Fri Nov 30, 2007 17:01 UTC
Yes, a very moving page. When I was a child in Illinois, our school principal used to read that poem to us once a year on Poppy Day. | micrologus Mon Oct 8, 2007 08:51 UTC
Héél mooie pagina, ontroerend nietwaar? En zeggen dat ik er iedere dag van mijn leven mee gecontfronteerd word. Iedere avond kan ik de last post horen tot bij mij thuis. |
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