Today's harvest with the diggers in Boezinghe

[frans]

A couple of pictures of English detonators we found. One of the wooden boxes was still in a fairly good condition, the second box was broken into bits.

[truthergw]

A couple of pictures of English detonators we found. One of the wooden boxes was still in a fairly good condition, the second box was broken into bits.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I hope you are all digging VERY gently with soft fluffy spades. Great work, keep it up.

[frans]

Every year during the week repairs and maintenance is done by the group on the Yorkshire Trench. Due to the growing numbers of visitors to the site, it was in need of a make-over. This afternoon visitors commented if the trench would have looked this bright, when dry the colour of the clay filled sandbags would have looked similar.

In the top picture are Paul and Patrick repairing the back wall of the trench.

The bottom picture Egon is repairing the bottom edges.

[frans]

I have read in some postings that there is some confusion whether the Dug-out is filled with concrete. If you bring along an aqua long and a good pair of flippers the dug out is very much accesable. The only place which had to be concreted is the chamber which goes under the road. This to avoid the road subsiding. These rules were laid down by the planning department of Ieper.

For anybody who wishes to see what is actually under the ground, there is a very good display of the Dug-out in the In Flanders Field Museum and a video which was shot in the dug-out.

Now the A frame. The top photo is a section of original A frames. On the bottom photo is the replica A frame at the Yorkshire trench site. The space between the inside of the horisontal uprights is 51-62 cm. The walking boards are 42 cm everywhere. The A frames are first installed and wedged against the clay walls and bottom. Then planks were laid between the upright section, and the clay filled sandbags were stacked on the inside of the A frame and boarding. In the reconstruction the bags don't touch the boarding this with a vieuw to if and when repairs are needed, in the original trench the bags actually touched the boards. It is the weight of the bags on the frame which acts like an anker. The angle of the upright means that you end up with a very narrow trench.

Talking to several visitors this afternoon who were under the impression that all the ww1 trenches are structures like the 1917 trench. The 1915 trench systems were more like shallow ditches no deeper than 70 cm, the 1916 trenches were slightly deeper 90-120 cm and more advanced than the 1915 trench.

[frans]

This photo which is taken through the hole in the armourplate which is fixed in the structure. In 1915 the german line is roughly where the small shed is. The 1915 english trench is 5 meters in front of us. The distance between opposing sides is approx 40-50 meters. In 1917 the german lines are approx 250-300 meters from the Yorkshire trench on a line where the tall trees are.

[frans]

Just coming back to the Ladungswerfers.

I have just received the following information regarding this mortar.

It was sent to us by Tony who is a member of the Belgian bomb squad.

The top photo shows the 24 cm Ladungswerfer, many types were tried but this was one of the more succesfull types.

Weight of the charge 14kg- 23kg.

The weapon could reach  180-280 meters.

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I have received this photo of the actual peace of equipment from Tony that fired the mortar.

[J T Gray]

That's a very interesting photo Frans, especially as it differs so much from the drawing! Is the drawing a British attempt to describe the mortar based on the bomb, I wonder? I guess it is rather like the Livens Projector in that it's the smallest possible launcher for the largest possible charge.

Adrian

[frans]

That's a very interesting photo Frans, especially as it differs so much from the drawing! Is the drawing a British attempt to describe the mortar based on the bomb, I wonder? I guess it is rather like the Livens Projector in that it's the smallest possible launcher for the largest possible charge.

Adrian

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I agree with you that the drawing differs from the real weapon. The drawings orrigin I don't know it was sent to us by the Belgian Bomb squad to give an impression of the workings of the system. In 1915 there were many experimental systems tried and tested. For us as a group this find was unique. The range of this weapon was fairly short, while the livens was more updated and carried much further. The range of the livens is 1100 to 1500 meters with a payload of 13kg.

Regards Frans.

[frans]

This item came back restored from a previous excavation close by. It looks like an improvised kettle handle. A nice peace of work.

[Andrew Hesketh]

I've been following this thread closely as many others obvioulsy have. Can I thank everyone involved in bringing these discoveries to our attention. Absolutely brilliant. I look forward to the next installment!!

[AndyHollinger]

Somewhere above I have another entry ... but it says what I am now saying again ... thank you, very much. The work and the communication of the work means much to me and, I believe, to all of us.

[Steve Bramley]

These circles were unearthed last saturday. The diameter is 3 feet but over the years they have been found up to a diameter of 6 feet. They have only been found in English positions near the canal at Boezinge and we have no clue at all for what purpose they served. Any suggestions will be very welcome.

Hi Frans,

Firstly, thanks very much for the thread, very interesting.

As regards to the quote above. I am certainly no expert and being so close to the canal this would seem unlikely but. I received a copy of 'Beneath Flanders Fields' yesterday and on page 82 there is a part about 'tubbed' mine shafts. Could this be 'tubbing'? The tubbing was 6 feet in diameter.

Well, you asked for suggestions

Also, would the large mortar shell that you found be the ones known as 'Sausages' to the British in '15 or is your example from later in the war? Great photograph of the mortar that fired it.

Regards,

Steve.

[Aurel Sercu]

. I am certainly no expert and being so close to the canal this would seem unlikely but. I received a copy of 'Beneath Flanders Fields' yesterday and on page 82 there is a part about 'tubbed' mine shafts. Could this be 'tubbing'? The tubbing was 6 feet in diameter.

Steve.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Steve,

The tubbing system for dug-outs, such as Lancashire Farm Dug-out nearby, was very different. See :

http://www.wo1.be/diggers/E/activiteiten/d...shire/tekst.htm

Aurel

[frans]

This is one of the last photo's of today but it gives you an impression of the size of todays work area. At the top is where we finished last week and we are now moving towards the canal in a north westerly direction.

[frans]

The soil is scraped of in very thin slices, until something like in the picture appears.

[frans]

After about half an hour this is the result. A german short bajonet in an english trench.

[frans]

Another good example why you have to be carefull. This is wat our first sighting was.

[frans]

After about 1.5 hours with two men this is the result. A mint condition rum jar, two spades and two different german handgrenades. In the bottom right you will find a german stickgrenade. The pipe in the front is an old drainage pipe.

[frans]

Heavy English artillery shell found 50cm under the surface.

[frans]

Here is a collection of today's handgrenades. There are types from both sides. The majority which are mainly on the left of the photo are an unknown type to us. I have requested information over these from the Belgian bomb squad.

[frans]

I would like to thank all the pals who have written these positive and pleasant

remarks about the groups work.

I am afraid I don't have the time to reply to everybody's answer regarding suggestions to certain items, but I greatly appreciate the input and we do use the suggestions.

Regards Frans.

[frans]

I reveived from Tony some information regarding the handgrenades we found last saturday. This is the N8 Double cylinder Pattein grenade. It was manufactured by the Bethune factory from 1915. This company also made the N6.

The bottom picture shows the round lead peaces which were in the outerwall of the grenade.

[frans]

This is what is left of a N6 grenade.

[frans]

The example on the photo is a Batty grenade.

[frans]

English N3 grenade with rifle attachement found last saturday. Introduced in 1915,

halfway 1916 they had a weekly production of 70000 per week;