Pallid Farm

[Augustin]

Hello everyone

there is a farm in the Eecke area where a shelter was built by the canadians to accommodate a machine gun but i'm looking why build this here, was the front nearby? Did the farm serve as a cantonment for the troops?

I am open to all information

I show you documents from this farm

Thanks

Augustin

 

[Augustin]

[Augustin]

the farm is located on Rue du Bois Blanc

[Augustin]

[Arne Vandendriessche]

Hoi,

Die boerderij lag vrij ver van het front.
Waarschijnlijk werd de boerderij gebruikt om te trainen want als er ooit een offensief van de Duitsers was (maar die kwam nooit) zijn er rijen loopgraven niet ver van die boerderij, waarschijnlijk ook als oefenloopgraaf. Dit is wat ik denk dat zou kunnen zijn.
Ik ben geen expert, maar misschien kan brianmorris547  bevestigen dat dit klopt?

Arne

Edited 18 August , 2021 by Arne Vandendriessche

[Augustin]

Hello
 
thank you for these suggestions indeed there may have been a training camp but I remain skeptical
about the use of the farm
the front was perhaps not very far, perhaps it was useful in repelling a probable German offensive?
 
Always open to other information Thank you
 
Augustin

 

 

Edited 18 August , 2021 by Augustin

[Augustin]

The line at the bottom right of the map hugs the front line near Meteren and the arrows indicate a possible German advance and circled at the top left hugs Pallid Farm.

Edited 18 August , 2021 by Augustin

[Arne Vandendriessche]

They had to be prepared for anything.
They may have built that structure against a possible German offensive. If you know which unit was there, things might be found in that unit's WD.

Arne

Edited 18 August , 2021 by Arne Vandendriessche

[Augustin]

Unfortunately no idea of the number of battalion or of which battalion he could have occupied the farm.

[Arne Vandendriessche]

Are words scratched into the walls of the bunker on the farm?

[Augustin]

good question, I'll go and see

Edited 18 August , 2021 by Augustin

[Arne Vandendriessche]

 

Hi,

Don't forget to translate your posts.

Arne

[Augustin]

Hi
 i won't forget

Augustin

[Augustin]

[brianmorris547]

This location is on this NLS map, dated May 1918 https://maps.nls.uk/view/101464885

I had a look in the WD for 29 Div HQ General Staff and in 1918 there are instructions for the 64 Divisional Machine Guns. The only reference to Eecke that I saw was in February 1918 when 86 Infantry Brigade marched to the Eecke training area.

This is from the February 1918 WD of 1 Bn Lancashire Fusiliers (Courtesy TNA WO 95/2300 = Ancestry p 169/785) and shows that the Bn were housed in scattered farms in the Eecke training area.

There may be mentions in the other Units of 29 Div, I will look in the morning. 

Brian

Edited 19 August , 2021 by brianmorris547
typo

[mebu]

There probably was training in the area, but the bunker at Pallid Farm was for potential use, not practice.  The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company, assisted by 220th Transportation (Works) Company, built the Arques Type 2 in July 1918 for a unit of the 9th (Scottish) Division). They recorded building it at ref Q 19b 55.75.

They also recorded building the others (not there now) roughly marked in red on the(Australian) map I sent you which you have used above.

There was much defence work started and planned both east and west of Eecke in 1918. Attached is a map of the main Army and GHQ lines, copied from the large originals at NA (not all work started) and the inundation planned in case of a German breakthrough. The black defence lines stop where they meet the Belgian army.

Peter

PS the faint pencil line on the right, around Merville, was the front line in summer 1918

Edited 18 August , 2021 by mebu

[brianmorris547]

Peter, thanks for the map 

I was reading TLLT about the German Break in on the Lys on 09/04/1918 and selected 29 Div as a starting point from the OOB. Had the break in not been stopped it would have gone right through Eecke. 

I must have driven past Eecke a good few times between Cassel and Poperinge and also on trips to Goedwaersvelde for Mont des Cats, Mont Noir and Mont Rouge.

Brian 

[Augustin]

Thank you for this information I know from information that the village was invaded in 1914 by the Germans they were pushed back by the English and the French in a few hours maybe the farm was a place of combat for a few hours during this German breakthrough?

thank you all for the information

Augustin

[Augustin]

Thank you for the card and the document

[Augustin]

surprising that the bunker does not appear on any map does it seem to me?

Augustin

[Arne Vandendriessche]

On 18-8-2021 at 16:40, Arne Vandendriessche said:

Zijn er woorden gekrast in de muren van de bunker op de boerderij?

Do you check it?

[Arne Vandendriessche]

Maybe this is because the bunkers had to be kept secret?
And if the map came into the hands of the Germans, they don't know that there is a bunker there? I don't know but this might be an answer.

Arne

[Augustin]

Yes maybe.

Augustin

 

[Augustin]

if anyone has a war diary that talks about "Pallid Farm" let me know. Thank you

Augustin

[mebu]

23 hours ago, Augustin said:

surprising that the bunker does not appear on any map does it seem to me?

It probably does appear on a map somewhere. Maybe a machine gun company or brigade sector map. There are many war diaries to go through....

 

Peter