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Details
POPERINGHE is a small town in the Province
of West Flanders, 7 miles due West of Ypres and 12 miles North East of
Hazebrouck, with a station on the railway between those towns. It lies
in a flat country of small villages and farms, in which long avenues of
willows and fields of hops are the noticeable features.
The town was of great importance during the war because, although occasionally
bombed or bombarded at long range, it was the nearest place to Ypres which
was both considerable in size and reasonably safe. It was at first a Casualty
Clearing Station centre, but by 1916 it was found desirable to move these
units further back, and Field Ambulances took their places.
The earliest British graves are in the Communal Cemetery, a walled graveyard
on the Reninghelst road at the entrance to the town. The Old Military
Cemetery was made in the course of the first Battle of Ypres, and was
closed (so far as British burials are concerned) at the beginning of May,
1915. It is on the right of the Reninghelst road, about too yards outside
the town.
A little further, on the left of the road, is the New Military Cemetery,
established in June, 1915. It is raised slightly above the road, and covers
376 square yards. It is entered from the road, on either side of the Cross
; and the War Stone, at the East end, is on a paved platform. The Cemetery
is contained by a low stone kerb wall outside a thorn hedge, and is planted
with willows. It contains the graves of 596 soldiers from the United Kingdom,
55 from Canada, 20 from Australia, 3 from New Zealand, and 2 of the British
West Indies Regiment; and a member of the Chinese Labour Corps is buried
at the South East corner. French and Belgian soldiers are also buried
in it.
The Register of the New Military Cemetery records particulars of 677 British
and Dominion graves.
Number of burials by Unit
| Royal Field Artillery |
111
|
|
Royal Engineers |
60
|
| Canadian units |
56
|
|
Royal Army Medical Corps |
27
|
| Rifle Brigade |
25
|
|
Royal Army Service Corps |
25
|
| Scots Guards |
25
|
|
Australian units |
19
|
| Royal Garrison
Artillery |
19
|
|
Royal Fusiliers |
17
|
| Durham Light Infantry |
16
|
|
King's Royal Rifle Corps |
16
|
| King's Shropshire Light
Infantry |
16
|
|
Yorkshire Regt. (Green
Howards) |
13
|
| York & Lancaster
Regt. |
12
|
|
Coldstream Guards |
11
|
| King's Liverpool Regt. |
11
|
|
North Staffordshire
Regt. |
9
|
| Sherwood Foresters (Notts.
& Derbys. Regt.) |
9
|
|
Seaforth Highlanders |
8
|
| Buffs (East Kent Regt.) |
7
|
|
Duke of Wellington's
(West Riding Regt.) |
7
|
| Leicestershire Regt. |
7
|
|
Leinster Regt. |
7
|
| Northumberland Fusiliers |
7
|
|
Suffolk Regt. |
6
|
| West Yorkshire Regt. |
6
|
|
Cheshire Regt. |
5
|
| Hampshire Regt. |
5
|
|
Ox. & Bucks. Light
Infantry |
5
|
| Royal Dublin Fusiliers |
5
|
|
Royal West Kent (Queen's
Own) |
5
|
| 16th Bn. London Regt.
(Queen's Westminster Rifles) |
4
|
|
Gordon Highlanders |
4
|
| Grenadier Guards |
4
|
|
King's Own Yorkshire
Light Infantry |
4
|
| Queen's (Royal West
Surrey Regt.) |
4
|
|
Royal Welsh Fusiliers |
4
|
| Somerset Light Infantry |
4
|
|
Bedfordshire Regt. |
3
|
| Duke of Cornwall's Light
Infantry |
3
|
|
East Surrey Regt. |
3
|
| Essex Regt. |
3
|
|
Highland Light Infantry |
3
|
| Machine Gun Corps (Inf.) |
3
|
|
New Zealand units |
3
|
| Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers |
3
|
|
Royal Irish Rifles |
3
|
| 2nd Bn. London Regt.
(Royal Fusiliers) |
2
|
|
British West Indies |
2
|
| Gloucestershire Regt. |
2
|
|
King's Own Royal Lancaster
Regt. |
2
|
| Middlesex Regt. |
2
|
|
Military Police Corps |
2
|
| Royal Sussex Regt. |
2
|
|
Royal Warwickshire Regt. |
2
|
| Welsh Regt. |
2
|
|
Wiltshire Regt. |
2
|
| 3rd County of London
Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) |
1
|
|
Army Cyclist Corps |
1
|
| Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) |
1
|
|
Devonshire Regt. |
1
|
| Hertfordshire Regt. |
1
|
|
Labour Corps |
1
|
| Lancashire Fusiliers |
1
|
|
Lincolnshire Regt. |
1
|
| Loyal North Lancashire
Regt. |
1
|
|
Manchester Regt. |
1
|
| North Irish Horse |
1
|
|
Northamptonshire Regt. |
1
|
| Northamptonshire Yeomanry |
1
|
|
Northumberland Hussars |
1
|
| Queen's Own Yorkshire
Dragoons |
1
|
|
Royal Army Veterinary
Corps |
1
|
| Royal Flying Corps |
1
|
|
South Lancashire Regt. |
1
|
| South Staffordshire
Regt. |
1
|
|
South Staffordshire
Regt. |
1
|
| Welsh Guards |
1
|
|
Worcestershire Regt. |
1
|
| Identified UK Burials |
674
|
|
|
|
| Unidentified UK Burials |
3
|
|
|
|
| Chinese Labour Corps |
1
|
|
|
|
| Total Burials |
678
|
|
|
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Awards buried in this cemetery
Maj. L.A. Barrett M.C. Mentioned in
Despatches. 1st Bn. Northumberland Fusiliers. Killedn in action 17/03/16.
I.E.34.
Lt. A.F. Blackwell M.C. 6th (London) Bde. Royal Field Artillery.
02/06/17. II.D.10.
Dvr. G. Buckley M.M. 51st Div; Ammunition Col. Royal Field Artillery.
08/07/17. II.B.32.
Capt. P.M Chaworth-Musters M.C. Div. Trench Mortar Offic., 25th
Div. Royal Field Artillery. 18/07/17. II.G.23.
Lt. Col. R.V. Doherty-Holwell D.S.O. Mentioned in Despatches.A.D.
Army Signals 8th Corps Royal Engineers. Killed in action at Ypres, 09/01/17.
II.B.12.
Maj. J. Foord M.C. Canadian Mounted Rifles. Killed in action 18/06/17.
II..J.23.
2nd Lt. W.L.P. Grifftith-Jones M.C. 3rd attd. 2nd Bn. Durham Light
Infantry. Died of accidental injuries 12/07/16. Age 26. Educated at University
College School, London. Asst. Manager of Bukit Mertajam Rubbers.Co Ltd.,
Kulim, Kedah, Straits Settlements. II.C.3.
Capt. J.H.W. Hay. Long Service medal. 9th Bn.Seaforth Highlanders.
30/11//15. I.D.11.
Maj. E.C.R. Kilkelly M.C. "A" Bty. 186th Bde. Royal Field
Artillery. Killed in action near Ypres, 26/06/17. Age 21. Son of Lt. Col.
C.R. Kilkelly, Grenadier Guards (retired). II.E.13.
Capt. H.H. Lean M.C. Staff Bde. Maj. 153rd Infantry Bde. Highland
Light Infantry. Killed in action by shell fire, with his own G.C.O. 29/07/17.
Four times previously wounded in the War. II.G.35.
Capt. J. Maughan Mentioned in Despatches. 4th Bn. Yorkshire Regt.
Killed in action 1/02/16. I.G.25.
Lce. Cpl. H.J.W. Nixon (served as H. Anstead) D.C.M. 1st Bn. West
Yorkshire Regt. Died of accidental injuries 18/08/15. II.C.16.
S.M. A. Noble D.C.M. and Bar. 1st Bn. Durham Light Infantry. Killed
in action 12/02/16. I.C.29.
Capt. H.G. Pearce M.C. 171st Coy. Royal Engineers. 15/07/17. II.B.44.
Capt. G.J. Scott. Mentioned in Despatches. 1/5th Bn. Yorkshire
Regt. Killed in action near Ypres, 25/12/15.Age 41. I.E.36.
Lce. Cpl. A.C. Smith M.M. 5th (London) Field Ambulance Royal Army
Medical Corps. 24/12/16. II.A.13
Lt. Col. H.S. Smith D.S.O. 1st Bn. Leicester Regt. Killed in action
22/10/15. I.E.23.
Serjt. J.N. Smith M.M. 98th Coy. Royal Army Service Corps. 14/01/17/.II.C.34.
Maj. H.H.S. Vaughan. Mentioned in Despatches. 83rd Bty. Royal Field
Artillery. Killed in acrion at the Battle of St.Eloi, 24/04/16. I.B.28.
Capt. W.G. Walker M.C. an Bar. General list attd. Trench Mortar
Batteries 8th Div. Killed in action 18/07/17. II.B.41.
Maj. M.H. Wilkinson M.C. 177th Coy. Royal Engineers. 31/07/17.
II.G.43.
Maj. A.O. Wraith. Mentioned in Despatches. 245th Tunneling Coy.
Royal Engineers. Killed in action at Ypres 13/06/17. Went as Mining Engineer
to South Africa in 1911. Fought in German South West Africa. Landed in
France Nov.1915. I.B.25.
Also buried in this cemetery
Lt. E.J. Maxwell Stuart 175th Coy. Royal Engineers. Killed in action
26/04/16. Age 23.Son of Edmund and the Hon. Mrs. Maxwell Stuart of Balworth
park, Arundel, Sussex. One of four brothers killed in the War. I.B.29.
Capt. H.F. Thompson 9th attd 12th Bn. Rifle Brigade.12/07/16. Age
38. Educated Dundalk and T.C.D., Ex. Sch. Sen. Mod. B.A.. Assistant Masterat
Edinburgh Academy 1904; Charterhouse 1910; Born at Cushendall, Co. Antrim.
II.E.4.
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