armourersergeant Posted 12 June , 2003 Share Posted 12 June , 2003 I know that the French and the British both launched attacks of their own but I know very little regarding the Belgian Army, other than it faught a very gallant action in 1914 in defence of its homeland and was lead by their King. Just general info really but did the King really rule the army or did he have a cheif of staff who did his bid in his name. Also did they launch their own battles or were they co-ordinated with other nations and subordinate to them. Also did they have any marked Generals of ability? Ta Arm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert Heyvaert Posted 12 June , 2003 Share Posted 12 June , 2003 King Albert refused to 'leant' his troops to allied generals. There is some discussion about this, as some say he saw the pointlessness of most allied offensives but I wont go that far. It was only in 1918 that Albert I placed his troops under allied command, when he saw the chances in war were turning. Opportunism to some, healthy common sense to other. This caused the Belgian army only a few tenthousand casualties. So most of the dead fell in 1914 or 1918 Belgian army never launched offensives on their own, simply because the terrain was not suitable for it. I do believe Belgian army units fought on the British left flank at the Blankaart during the opening stages of third Ypres. In 1918 heavy fighting occured at Houthulst forrest. Best, Bert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 But the Belgian Army launched many large-scale raids, notably in the area of Diksmuide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Parker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Belgian troops were also involved in defending the Ieper Canal just north of Ypres during the German attack in April 1915. geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurel Sercu Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 That's right, Geoff. Belgian Grenadiets. Near Steenstrate, a hamlet of Boezinge, 3 km north of the village itself. So approx. 9 km north of Ypres. That's the northern end of the line where on 22.4.15 chlorine gas was released by German units. Aurel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Didn't Belgian troops retake Passchendaele in September 1918? I seem to remember a street in the modern village which commemorates the unit that was involved? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 I'll post some more on this pet subject of mine when I get home tonight! Meanwhile here's a question for you, as a teaser. Can you name the brothers who were killed in a Belgian raid at De Stampkot in 1917, who became icons as heroes of Flemish brotherhood, and at whose original grave the first Ijzerbedevaart took place? And if you don't have the faintest idea what I'm talking about ... come back later! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Chris, I know that answer of course! But I won't give the answer yet. Paul, the Belgians recaptured Passchendaele (and Moorsleede etc.) indeed in 1918. I believe involved were the Carabiniers and Cyclists or something? Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Parker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 I thought one of the British Armies (2nd Army???) was under Belgian command during the final allied offensive of 1918. Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert Heyvaert Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Chris and Paul, I also know the answer off course, the brothers lived in a small town not far from where I live. I believe my grandmother even knew their parents when she was a little girl. But I want spoil the fun for our British friends. As for the attack on Passendale in 1918, my great-grandafthers' nefew was killed near Poelcapelle cemetery, just a few days before the Belgians took Passendale. He was an officer with the cyclists and has a small private memorial a few hundred meters down the road from Poelcapelle cemetery (it's the only Belgian one in the saliënt I think) Geoff, I think - technically speaking - all allied troops in Flanders were under supreme command of King Albert during the final offensive. I'm not sure whether this was purely 'façade' or that King Albert actually commanded the allied generals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurel Sercu Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Chris, And I know the answer too of course, as they were killed 4 km from where I live. But as I do not want to spoil the fun for our British friends either... And let me riposte with another question : did they die in each other's arms or not ? If the answer is affirmative, and : if you can prove it !, then you'll be a famous man in Flanders ! (And who will be the first British Forum visitor who comes up with the correct answer ? Jan and Bert and me will be the jury. The correct spelling may be decisive. I'm sure that Chris must have a free T-shirt for the first and only prize.) Aurel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 To avoid giving away free t-shirts, I will now reveal all... The Belgian Army of 1914-1918 has long been an interest of mine. A bit odd, you may think. You should have seen the look on the guy's face when I arrived at the archive at the Army Museum in Brussels, asking him difficult questions, in my terrible Flemish. I could see him thinking 'who is this nutter?' I have in the past given two talks on the subject. I have put my notes on two web pages for you to read. Lots of words, no pictures, but I may fix that later on. The first talk is about The Belgian Army in 1914, and the second is about The Belgian Army on the Yser. I am quite sure that Bert, AOK4, Aurel and others will have a good laugh at some of my interpretation of things...but of course all comments and opinions are welcomed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert Heyvaert Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Excellent work Chris! I'm impressed by your knowledge of the Belgian Army, although I don't completely agree with the part you wrote about the Ysertower. Just one remark: Temse is not really close to Hasselt. I live 5 miles from Temse, and Hasselt is about 75-100km away, it's in Limburg! At uni we like to call the Limburgers foreigners, to tease them, as they have a very strong dialect. The guy who came up with the idea to open the locks at Nieuwpoort also lived in our area ( this is the Schelde-area), he was in the local veterans league were my grandfather was part of. Nice to know there are some specialists on the Belgian army in the UK! regards, Bert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 June , 2003 Share Posted 13 June , 2003 Thanks Bert. Some of the material I posted there I wrote some years ago, and really should have corrected quite a few things. I now know both Temse and Hasselt, and the difference! The jenever is better in Hasselt... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 14 June , 2003 Share Posted 14 June , 2003 Chris you say "Belgium remained determined not to undermine its position of neutrality, and resisted Allied clamour for post-Victory expansion and profit at German expense. " Did you know Belgium demanded large parts of Holland after the war? Jan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 14 June , 2003 Share Posted 14 June , 2003 No, I did not know that. What was the ambition? Zeeuwse Vlaanderen? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AOK4 Posted 14 June , 2003 Share Posted 14 June , 2003 Yes, and I believe Nederlands Limburg too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zijde26 Posted 14 June , 2003 Share Posted 14 June , 2003 The final decision on it was taken in the talkings of Versailles. Gilbert Deraedt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andigger Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 Chris, I didn't know about your interest and expertise in the Belgian Army. I have printed your two articles and am eager to read them. By the way, do you know why the Belgians waited until Nov 1914 to declare war on Germany? I recently read that, but no explanation was given. Also since this post started (back in Jun 03!!) have you found out any more info regarding post war Belgium? Specifically I am curious if they did have occupation forces in Germany. A map was recently posted in another thread which indicated they surrounded the Maastricht Strip in Holland, which would support Jan idea they had ambitions towards Dutch territoy. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkristof Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 That's right, Geoff. Belgian Grenadiets. Near Steenstrate, a hamlet of Boezinge, 3 km north of the village itself. So approx. 9 km north of Ypres. That's the northern end of the line where on 22.4.15 chlorine gas was released by German units. Aurel <{POST_SNAPBACK}> And don't forget the Karabiniers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkristof Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 Yes, and I believe Nederlands Limburg too... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Indeed Zeeuw Vlaanderen and Dutch Limbourg... This made the Dutch army in alarm position!!! There was almost a little war between Belgium and Holland. There were even plan of Holland to invade Belgium in 1919 as preventive action!! Imagine that! That would be a massacre! Belgium was quite angry on Holland because they were "helping" the fleed Kaiser + They letted Germans pas trough to flee to Germany (whitout weapons) in 1918. + there were rumours they sold equipment to the Germans + Some Belgian POW in Holland told stories of terrible conditions in the camps. Ofcourse all this can be discused! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 Don't forget Belgium was neutral and detemined to remain so, even once attacked by Germany. There was much discussion regarding the legality of declaration of war and whether this changed Belgium's position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 From "The occupation of the Rhineland", the volume of the British Official History covering this period... "On 27 August [1921], the Germans made fresh protests aginst the simultaneous quartering of French and Belgian troops in the towns bordering on the Ruhr, including Opladen in the British area... ...it transpired that...the French would shortly withdraw one Division from the Belgian zone". Looks very much like there was a Belgian presence in Germany. Opladen is today a suburb of Leverkusen, just outside Koln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkristof Posted 5 April , 2005 Share Posted 5 April , 2005 There certainly was!!! There was also a medal made for it + i have a print of it.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bulldogbrad Posted 7 April , 2005 Share Posted 7 April , 2005 Didn't Belgian troops retake Passchendaele in September 1918? I seem to remember a street in the modern village which commemorates the unit that was involved? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> In a very good guide book to the Hill 60 area are photographs and inscriptions of two adjacent memorials. One commemorates the driving out of the invader by troops under the leadership of the King of The Belgians. The other is the memorial erected by the survivors of the 1st Australian Tunnelling Co in memory of their fallen comrades. The Author does not elaborate on the Belgian memorial but comments that the Australians were overstating their 'length of service' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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