Mike Steele Posted 3 July , 2003 Share Posted 3 July , 2003 I went to the Devonshire cementary on Tuesday and it is sad to see it in quite a poor state. I guess it is due to the sheer volume of visitors in such a small space but they have had to rope off a narrow walkway to allow the grass to recover and grow around the graves. Perhaps the CWGC should consider putting down mats to protect the ground from the tramp of hundreds of feet ?? A real shame as I always think it as being one of the prettiest and most peaceful places on the Somme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Hill 60 Posted 3 July , 2003 Share Posted 3 July , 2003 A real shame as I always think it as being one of the prettiest and most peaceful places on the Somme. Mike - Got to agree with you there. Of all the cemeteries I visited on my first visit to the Somme (3 years ago) I found this one to be the most peaceful. I suppose when a cemetery has a particular 'grab' for the pilgrims, i.e. the grave of a famous person etc, then it will suffer more wear & tear than some others. The trouble with putting mats down, as far as I can see, is that they would have to be quite wide so that groups could pass by each other quite comfortably; this, I think, would spoil the look of the place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Coulson Posted 3 July , 2003 Share Posted 3 July , 2003 The use of the plastic interlocking "mesh" which is sunk to ground level as at Tyne Cot would probably be the answer. Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Reed Posted 3 July , 2003 Share Posted 3 July , 2003 It was my understanding that the cemetery was in the process of being re-turfed; there is an 'intermediate' phase when this is done when the cemetery looks scruffy... I suspect this is what you have seen. In April it had no grass at all, and was all mud. Occasionally this type of work has to be done, especially in cemeteries where there are lots of visitors like this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevew Posted 6 July , 2003 Share Posted 6 July , 2003 I too thought it was being returfed, I visited the Devonshire in late May, and it was very muddy then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MartinWills Posted 6 July , 2003 Share Posted 6 July , 2003 There are a number of cemeteries which seem to suffer from a surfeit of visitors feet. I have often thought that parts of Tyne Cot look well worn as do bits of Essex Farm. I think this is inevitable and whilst the CWGC do their best the sheer volume of visitors under all sorts of weather conditions can mean that it becomes almost impossible to maintain the perfect turf we see elsewhere in lesser visited corners. I am also aware that Gallipoli cemeteries are suffering. In this case it is more from drought/lack of water as the area becomes drier than it once was. One initiative on the peninsula has been the removal of trees from the cemeteries and their surrounds. If one doubts the seriousness of dry years one only has to look at the corner of the Helles Memorial which is slowly and slightly subsiding - though this is constantly monitored. In terms of the volume of visitors I think we should be grateful that so many go to pay their respects and/or learn about what happened and see how many rest in peace in that corner of so many foreign fields. The wear is a small price to pay for this act of remembrance some 85 or 90 years on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Simon Bull Posted 9 July , 2003 Share Posted 9 July , 2003 I wonder if some of the wear and tear at some of the larger cemeteries (and I have in mind particularly Tyne Cot) could be saved by opening more than one easily accessible entrance. Wear and tear tends to be concentrated around the entrance. Simon Bull Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul guthrie Posted 9 July , 2003 Share Posted 9 July , 2003 SImon I think that would greatly injure the architecture, a bad trade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Simon Bull Posted 9 July , 2003 Share Posted 9 July , 2003 Don't you think that depends how it is done though Paul? Eg at Tyne Cot (1) Small non-obtrusive un-arched (ie just a small gap cut in the wall) entrances at either side cut into the side walls near to the front, so that people parking at either end of the front parking bay might be inclined to use them. (2) If a new car park is built at the back, some kind of undramatic entrance at one end of the memorial wall. I agree it is a difficult issue, but I have never yet seen Tyne Cot without the grass around the entrance looking a mess. This is not fault of the CWGC, just sheer weight of visitor numbers. Simon Bull Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul guthrie Posted 10 July , 2003 Share Posted 10 July , 2003 There is no doubt you are right about the entrance at Tyne Cot, but when you look at an aerial photo as in Giles's then and now books the symmetry of this place is wonderful and I would not disturb it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Simon Bull Posted 13 July , 2003 Share Posted 13 July , 2003 I can entirely see your point of view Paul. I suspect that this sort of problem is going to become quite significant at some of the busier cemeteries as interest in the Great War grows and Continental travel becomes even easier Simon Bull Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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