Wall Disbanded German Ehrenfriedhof 124

During the 1st Battle of Ypres, Poelkapelle was taken as the westernmost village by German troops on 20 October 1914 and it would remain in German hands for almost the entire war.

During this period, several German military cemeteries were established in and around the village from October 1914 onwards, which were already brought together during the war.

The only remaining remnant of these cemeteries is the wall of Poelkapelle Dorf -N° 124. Originally constructed for the more than 50 victims of the explosion of an ammunition depot in the village on the night of 11-12 May 1916. They were interred in a mass grave here. Later, the buried fallen from other cemeteries were transferred here. Until 1917, a large monument adorned with a German eagle stood in the cemetery and only two granite blocks remain of it at present.

Eventually, 785 dead would be buried here, 253 of whom were unidentified. The cemetery, like the others, was cleared in the 1920s and 1950s and the bodies were transferred to the 4 large German cemeteries, with the unidentified to the "Kameradengrab" in Langemark and the identified to the assembly cemetery in Menin.

In 1957, the current playground was created on the former cemetery, which was renamed "Playground Guynemer" in 1967 to mark the 50th anniversary of the disappearance of this French Axis.

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Source

• Text: Francky de Rous
• Photos: Francky de Rous