The town of Poperinghe (now Poperinge) was of great importance during the First World War because, although occasionally bombed or bombarded at long range, it was the nearest place to Ypres (now Ieper) which was both considerable in size and reasonably safe. It was at first a centre for Casualty Clearing Stations, but by 1916 it became necessary to move these units further back and field ambulances took their places.
The earliest Commonwealth graves in the town are in the communal cemetery, which was used from October 1914 to March 1915. The Old Military Cemetery was made in the course of the First Battle of Ypres and was closed, so far as Commonwealth burials are concerned, at the beginning of May 1915. The cemetery served a casualty clearing hospital that was located in a chateau on the Deken De Bolaan, and was owned by a local justice of the peace Mr D’Hondt, this was located to the left of the cemetery. It was also used as a civilian hospital to treat typhoid patients and there was also a ward for the 7th Belgian Field Artillery. The chateau was never rebuilt after the War and many of the
decorative stones have been used as façade embellishments to nearby homes, particularly numbers 45 to 55.
First Burials
The first British burial is that of 6377 Rifleman Harry Marriot, 2nd Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps, age 29, grave I.L.5. He died on 23 October 1914. He was the son of William and Hannah Marriott, of 20, Hawksley Road, Nottingham. His is a double grave shared with 3611 Guardsman A. Wardle, Coldstream Guards, grave I.L.6. He died on 25 October 1914. In the large central plot are the burials from April – May 1915 of which 30 are men of the King’s Own Scottish Borderers and their commanding officer Captain Rupert C.Y. Dering, who died of his wounds received in the fighting at Hill 60 between 17-19 April 1915. Also buried here is Lieutenant-Colonel Russell Lambert Boyle, 10th Battalion Canadian Infantry, grave II.M.54. He died as a result of the first German gas attack in April 1915 at St Julien.
The graves of about 800 French and Belgian soldiers and nearly 500 civilians were removed from the cemetery after the Armistice. For the most part, the civilians died in an epidemic of typhoid at the end of 1914.
Light Railway
The cemetery is enclosed by a red brick wall and beyond the wall, on the right hand side as you enter the cemetery, is the bedding of the old Hazebrouck to Poperinghe light railway. It is now a public walkway and cycle path named after a local café/bar ‘A la Promenade de Quintan’, Quinten’s Wandeling (Quinten’s Walk). The light railway and sidings serviced the camps and dumps along the southern side of the Poperinghe to Vlamertinghe road and linked with the light railway network that serviced the whole area behind the front line.
Boy Soldiers
In the Ypres Salient, we are drawn to the graves of 6322 Private John Condon, 2nd Battalion Royal Irish Regiment, killed in action in May 1915, age 14 and the youngest known battle casualty of the war, although this is now questioned, and the grave of 5750 Valentine Strudwick, 8th Rifle Brigade, killed in action in January 1916, age 15. Strudwicks grave attracts a great deal of attention because of its location at Essex Farm and that locations association with Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae and the poem ‘In Flanders Fields.’ There are many more ‘Boy Soldiers’ buried across the Salient and who are not remembered in the same way and these include three from Falkirk District Private William Jamieson, age 17, Private James Duchart, age 16, and Private Herbert Richmond, age 17, There were many reasons why underage boys enlisted in 1914 and 1915 boredom with their jobs, looking for adventure, and escaping family pressures. The checks on age and qualification to enlist were more relaxed than later in the war. The army preferred younger recruits, there was a history of boy soldiers in the army going back over one hundred years. At Waterloo the army had a number of boy soldiers in their ranks. The army preferred younger recruits as they would follow orders and accept discipline more readily than older men. The boys had a belief in their own indestructibility and were prepared to take more risks. We tend to also forget the number of boys who served in the Royal Navy and we do not seem to have the same passionate response to their service as we do those who fought on the Western Front. With regards to army, the difference was the sheer number who served on the Western Front and there were more boy soldiers in 1915 than served in Wellington’s army at Waterloo. For further reading on this subject I recommend Richard Van Emden’s excellent book Boy Soldiers of the Great War.
There are three Boy Soldiers buried here.
32979 Sergeant John Wilfred McKay, Mentioned in Despatches. No.2 Field Ambulance, Canadian Medical Corps. Died of wounds 24 April 1915, age 16. Grave II.L.36. Son of John and Annie McKay, 27 Langford Avenue, Toronto, Ontario. His father was a Staff Sergeant in the same Field Ambulance and it was he who wrote to his wife with the news of their son’s death. John was wounded by a shrapnel shell which exploded close by when the Field Ambulance was marching. 3306 Private Wilfred Robert Jones, 1st/4th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment, 150th Brigade, 50th Division. Died of wounds 4 May 1915, age 17. Grave II.P.24. Son of Robert Henry and Sophia Jones, 5 Wharncliffe Street, Princes Avenue, Hull. On the 3 May the Battalion had withdrawn from the front line via Bridge 2 at Duhallow across the canal to the Reigersburg area. While in bivouacs they were shelled and suffered two Other ranks wounded adding to their casualties that day of 22 killed and 42 wounded. Wilfred died of his wounds. 1541 Private James Smart, 9th Battalion Royal Scots, 81st Infantry Brigade, 27th Division. Died of wounds 26 April 1915, age 17. Grave II.L.12. Son of John and Isabella Smart, 28 Marionville Road, Edinburgh. On the 25 April the Battalion was holding the line 1400 yards north of St Jean in the area of Wieltje Farm were the dug communication trenches and put up barbed wire defences with Battalion casualties recorded in the War Diary for 25 April as ‘2 Officers wounded, one Other Rank killed and two Other Ranks wounded.’ James died of his wounds on 26 April.
Captain and Adjutant Edwin Scott Bamford, 1st Battalion Yorks and Lancaster Regiment, 83rd Infantry Brigade, 28 Division. Died of wounds 23 April 1915, age 29. Grave II.L.39. Son of Arthur John and Anne Bamford. He married Louisa Mary Lottie ‘Lulu’ Scott Bamford, of Dhukrani, Herbertpur, Dehra-Dun, India, on 1 January 1913. He joined the 3rd Battalion Leicestershire Regiment and later transferred to the Yorks and Lancaster, as a Lieutenant in 1909. He served in India from 1908 to 1914 and was promoted to Captain on 5 September 1914 and arrived in France in January 1915. As adjutant he had responsibility for writing the War Diary, a sketch he made to explain the entry for 4 Feb 1915 and the hectic action around St Eloi that day. On the 23 April, Edwin’s birthday, the Battalion was in ‘rest’ near Ypres when they received orders at 1.15am to move to St Jean and to come under the command of Colonel Geddes. On the 22 April the Germans had used gas to break the French line at Pilkem Ridge and the British were now frantically pulling together reserves to fill the gap in the line. The Battalion took up a position North West of Wieltje and they came under severe and heavy shell fire and received orders to advance on the German positions despite coming under rifle and machine gun fire. They were supported by their own machine guns and by a Canadian machine gun in their advance. By 8pm the regiment had sustained heavy losses with only 300 remaining that it was felt that they could not hold the line taken and it was decided to withdraw to a line near Wieltje and dig in. They remained in position under heavy fire until relieved on 26 April and retired to Potijze Wood. Edwin died of wounds received during the advance on 23 April.
Shot at Dawn
44735 Wang Ch’un Ch’ih was a member of the 107th Company, Chinese Labour Corps. He was found guilty of murdering a colleague and was executed on 8 May 1919 at Poperinghe Town Hall.
FALKIRK AND DISTRICT MEN BURIED HERE
Camelon
2nd Battalion, Cameron Highlanders
Age 30
24.4.15
II.L.45
Son of David & Mary Gardiner, Lock 16, Portdownie, Camelon
Bonnybridge
'A' Coy 1st Battalion, Leinster Regiment
Age 21
25.4.15
Special Memorial 4
Son of Mrs Mary Cosgrove, 66 Meath Street, Dublin
Cemetery Location
Poperinghe Old Military Cemetery is located 10.5 Kms west of Ieper town centre, in the town of Poperinge itself. From Ieper, Poperinge is reached via N308. From Ieper town centre the Poperingseweg (N308), is reached via Elverdingsestraat then directly over two small roundabouts in the J.Capronstraat. The Poperingseweg is a continuation of the J.Capronstraat and begins after a prominent railway level crossing. On reaching the town of Poperinge the left hand turning from the N308 leads onto the R33 Poperinge ring road. 1 Km along the N33 lies the right hand turning onto Deken De Bolan. The cemetery is located 200 metres from the ring road level with the junction with Polenlaan, on the right hand side of the road.
The cemetery was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield.
Burials
The Old Military Cemetery contains 450 Commonwealth burials and commemorations of the First World War. There are 24 of the burials which are unidentified but there are Special Memorials to five British and two Canadian casualties known or believed to be buried among here.
UK – 397
Canadian – 46
Chinese Labour Corps – 1
Unnamed – 24 (UK 22 & Canadian 2)
German - 2
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