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Remembered Today:

the battle of the lys photos / newspaper articles


renny

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hello all

new recruit here - I am writing a book about three of my relatives who fought in the Great War and the battle of the Lys is central to the story. I was hoping that somewehre there might be some photos or nespaper articles that I could have a lokk at.

Many thanks for any help

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Hello Renny

Strangely enough I am writing an operational history of the Lys. It is going to be published next year. I may have material that would be useful to you, but you'll need to be specific about what you are looking for. The Lys was an enormous battle! Conversely I would also be interested in your relatives stories: photos especially.

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Hello Chris

that is exciting news about your book ! I'll be sure to get a copy - please let me know when it is likely to come out. My story concerns the Cook family ( of whom three fought in the Great War) from Crawley, Sussex who were my mother's family.

2nd. Lt. Richard Edward Cook was with the 11th Sufolks at La Rolanderie farm on the night of April 9th 1918 and was wounded in the abdomen on the 11th April, found doa of these wounds on the 13th at Mendinghem casualty clearing station near Proven. I have visited these areas a few times and last year had a tremendous visit with Jack Thorpe the curator of the museum at Erquinghem who showed me exactly where my cousin had been. I have also made great use of Phil Curme's wonderful site about the 11th Suffolks.

I have the relevant war records and diaries for the 11th Suffolks but details are very sparse so I have no real clue as to how my cousin came to suffer these wounds. The diary says that on the 11th, the battalion are dug in by the side of the Armentiers-Bailleul railway line and although there was fighting that day they were not involved - the diary is quite clear about that.

The diary goes on to say that the battalion set up outposts and sent out patrols to see what the enemy were up to. My latest theory is that Richard was leading one of these patrols when they encountered the enemy and he was thus wounded in that encounter.

That's all it is though is a theory because as you rightly say it was a huge battle and so many men got seperated from their units that he could just have easily been wounded elsewhere - although that does not explain how he managed to get himself evacuated so quickly.

Any info you have about that part of the battle would be useful and if there is anything you might like to ask me please feel free. I have been studying the Great War and 1918 for only two years and have yet to come across a book that concentrates on the Lys battle so I can't wait to read your book!

cheers

Renny

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I'll see what I have that might be of interest, Renny. Meanwhile, just a comment. Mendinghem is a pretty odd place for a casualty from the areas the 11th Suffolks were in at the time. As you know, it is quite a distance away and not on a normal route of evacuation. In the pretty chaotic period 11-13 April, almost anything could have happened but it strikes me as unusual. Have you looked at Richard's service record to see if there is anything in there that would shed any light on things?

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Yes Chris, I have his service record and there is nothing there that gives me an idea of how things happened. The War Diary for the period 11-13 April is just a couple of lines - I imagine they were rather busy at that time ! There are no mention of any specific casualties, just a list of killed and wounded at the end of the month - no names are mentioned. Even the appendix ' account of operation' makes no specific mention of casualties. The battalion was decimated at that time so it would have been a very long list!

I know from my research of the local papers of the time that the family received a telegram on the 13th saying he had been wounded and his service record has a copy of a telegram dated the 14th saying he had died of those wounds. This implies that he was in official hands pretty soon after he was wounded.

I don't know anything about lines of evacuation but as the crow flies Proven is, I think, about 10-12 km from the railway, so I am guessing that he was shot, evacuated from the fight and put on a limber sort of straight away.

Although he had only been with the 11th since March 2nd, he had been part of the draft from the 9th Suffolks that had been sent to the 11th. He was with the 9th since May 1917 so he would have got to know his comrades well and of course some of them would have been part of the draft.

Sadly, I am forced to concede that I will probably never know what happened.

thanks for your interest in this.

cheers

Renny

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Hello Renny

Strangely enough I am writing an operational history of the Lys. It is going to be published next year. I may have material that would be useful to you, but you'll need to be specific about what you are looking for. The Lys was an enormous battle! Conversely I would also be interested in your relatives stories: photos especially.

Chris

Was trying to send you a PM about your book but your inbox is full.

Bernard P

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This is a publication that I have been trying to get hold of for some time.

"Images de la grande guerre dans la valley de la Lys(1918)"

This was produced by Association Arham Artois Lys ARHAM.I think it was to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the battle.We have or had a member who is in or head of the association.I think that there was also an exhibition at the time which if my memory serves me right was visited by Paul Reed.I would love to see a copy but I was told that it was no longer available.It may be of interest to yourself or Chris Baker.I never give up on the possibility of finding such material as someone must have a copy of somewhere.

George

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  • 5 weeks later...

Hi Chris

earlier on this thread you mentioned lines of evacuation from the battle - have you got anything I could look at please ?

this is driving me mad lol

why can't I just accept that I am never going to know the answer ?

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Hi Colin

the area I am after is the Armentieres/Erquinghem area. Second Lieutenant R. E. Cook was with the 11th Suffolks at La Rolanderie farm on the night of April 9th 1918. He was wounded in the abdomen ( I believe somewhere along the Armentieres/Bailleul railway line ) on April 11th, evacuated to Mendinghem Casualty Clearing Station at Proven where he was found doa on April 13th.

anything you may have would be great!

cheers

Renny

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  • 2 years later...

Can anyone send me information on Chris's book?

The ones I've read oabout the Lys seem to miss the fact that 38Div Arty were covering that sector in April, even though the Div had moved back to the Somme.

122 Bde RFA lost two howitzers in Armentiers during the German shelling (believe my grandfather was with them - though he survived).

Any help would be appreciated.

thanks

Hello Renny

Strangely enough I am writing an operational history of the Lys. It is going to be published next year. I may have material that would be useful to you, but you'll need to be specific about what you are looking for. The Lys was an enormous battle! Conversely I would also be interested in your relatives stories: photos especially.

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Can anyone send me information on Chris's book?

The ones I've read oabout the Lys seem to miss the fact that 38Div Arty were covering that sector in April, even though the Div had moved back to the Somme.

122 Bde RFA lost two howitzers in Armentiers during the German shelling (believe my grandfather was with them - though he survived).

Any help would be appreciated.

thanks

You will find a review of the book in the Book Review section. Basically it says, " Get this one, it is good".

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  • 4 months later...

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the link, book bought and read.

An excellent book that details the 'fluid' nature of the battle for the Lys.

I though that the loss of two howitzers by the 38 Div Arty that I was researching was significant, but compared to the pounding received by other Bde's they seem to have got of lightly.

It also sheds some light onto what was happening to the 9th Bn RWF when my grandmothers brother was killed near Lagache Farm.

Thanks again for an excellent book.

Regards

Huw

You can buy it at Amazon. Use the Forum link and we are all happy!

Title is "The Battle for Flanders: German defeat on the Lys, 1918".

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  • 2 years later...

Hi - returning to an old thread here. I'm researching Gunner Robert Broom of the 252nd Siege Battery, Royal Garrison Artillery, died 25 April 1918, who is listed on the war memorial her in Burgh, Suffolk. I'm finding it difficult to establish where his battery was that day, but note this coincides with "2nd Kemmel Ridge", though I've seen nothing to show the unit as there that day. I note that the CWGC website shows 13 of the battery dying that day and 8 men of the 263rd Siege Battery. I am imagining, nonetheless, that the German artillery bombardment for this attack may have been more wide-ranging than just targetting forces on Kemmel itself. If anyone can confirm, I'd be grateful, thanks - regards

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  • 3 years later...
On 17/08/2009 at 11:07, Chris_Baker said:

Hello Renny

Strangely enough I am writing an operational history of the Lys. It is going to be published next year. I may have material that would be useful to you, but you'll need to be specific about what you are looking for. The Lys was an enormous battle! Conversely I would also be interested in your relatives stories: photos especially.

Do you know if there is any information on the 33rd battalion of kings royal rifle corps ?

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