In Flanders Flooded Fields Read online

  IN FLANDERS

  FLOODED

  FIELDS

  IN FLANDERS

  FLOODED

  FIELDS

  Before Ypres there was Yser

  Paul Van Pul

  First published in Great Britain in 2006 by

  Pen & Sword Military

  an imprint of

  Pen & Sword Books Ltd

  47 Church Street

  Barnsley

  South Yorkshire

  S70 2AS

  Copyright © Paul A. A. Van Pul, 2006

  ISBN 1 84415 492 0

  The right of Paul A. A. Van Pul to be identified as Author of this Work has been

  asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright,

  Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is

  available from the British Library

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  Publisher in writing.

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  Phoenix Typesetting, Auldgirth, Dumfriesshire

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  Plerosque Beigas esse ortos a Germanis, Rhenumque antiquitus traductos propter

  loci fertilitatem ibi consedisse Gallosque, qui ea loca incolerent, expulisse solosque

  esse, …, Teutonos Cimbrosque intra suos fines ingredi prohibuerint; qua ex re fieri,

  uti earum rerum memoria magnam sibi auctoritatem magnosque Spiritus in re militari

  sumerent.

  Commentarii De Bello Gallico, II, 4.

  Most of the Belgae had sprung from the Germans, and a long while ago had been led

  across the Rhine and had settled there on account of the productivity of the soil, and

  had driven out the Gauls who inhabited those regions. They were the only people

  who, in the memory of our fathers, when all Gaul was ravaged, had prevented the

  Teutoni and the Cimbri from entering their territory; and in consequence of the

  recollection of this achievement they assumed great authority and great airs in

  military matters.

  Transl. J. Pearl, p.54.

  Contents

  List of maps

  Foreword

  Acknowledgements

  Glossary

  Introduction

  Flanders’ flood

  For King and Country

  Chapter I

  Farewell to a fine fortress

  Chapter II

  Into the unknown

  Chapter III

  Towards the west

  Chapter IV

  To leave or not to leave

  Chapter V

  Jacta est alea

  Chapter VI

  The generals come to town

  Chapter VII

  The battle for the right bank

  Chapter VIII

  Flooding the creek

  Chapter IX

  The Tervaete debacle

  Chapter X

  The railway embankment

  Chapter XI

  Nieuport, a nautical knot

  Chapter XII

  The impending collapse

  Chapter XIII

  At the Spanish Lock

  Chapter XIV

  The bargee is a daredevil

  Chapter XV

  The final rumble in Ramscappelle

  Chapter XVI

  After the battle

  Chapter XVII

  Questions that still fascinate

  Appendix I

  The elusive keeper of the locks

  Appendix II

  Roads & Bridges mysteries

  Appendix III

  A royal treatment

  Appendix IV

  German ignorance

  Appendix V

  Other Belgian floods in 1914

  Bibliography

  Index

  General

  Maps

  List of Maps

  Guide to the Tactical Maps

  Strategic fortresses: Liège and Namur

  The ‘Antwerp dilemma’

  Antwerp/Etaples BEF Concentration

  Antwerp/Lokeren 6–7 October

  St-Nicolas/Eecloo 7–8 October

  St-Nicolas/Eecloo 8–9 October

  St-Nicolas/Eecloo 9–10 October

  Selzaete/Bruges 10 October

  Antwerp/Etaples French proposals

  Selzaete/Bruges 12 October

  Bruges/Furnes/Ypres 12 and 13 October

  Ostend/Furnes/Ypres 14 and 15 October

  Nieuport in 1850

  Nieuport/Bixschoote 16 and 17 October

  Five-Bridges Road in 1914

  Nieuwendamme Creek and Great Bamburgh Farm …

  Spring Sluice an aerial view

  Nieuport/Dixmude north

  Nieuport/Dixmude south

  Ypres Entrance Lock Café de l’Yser

  Nieuport/Furnes/Fintele Major waterways

  Nieuport/Furnes/Fintele Jamotte and Cogge recce

  Ostend/Dunkirk/Ypres and the Moeren Polders

  Ostend/Dunkirk/Ypres various flood projects

  Nieuport-Bains/Nieuport incl. narrow-gauge railways

  Spanish Lock Plan view

  Nieuport/Ramscappelle and Jockveld Farm

  Nieuport/Dixmude 31 October

  Antwerp/Lokeren various floods

  Foreword

  The episode of the Great War described in the following pages was fought on Flemish soil – in Flanders’ Fields. Despite the fact that the majority of the Belgian population was from Flemish origin and spoke the Flemish dialects1, the Belgian establishment then was still unilingual Francophone. As an example we can quote the fact that from junior high school on, only one language was tolerated in the classroom and on the playground: French. One of the results was that most of the localities and physical features in Flanders had a French designation that appeared on all official documents. As such many are still known today in the English language.

  During the same war, and for a variety of reasons, a Flemish Movement developed in which the Flemish soldiers, who formed the backbone of the front-line fighting forces, came up for equal language rights against the Francophone – and military – establishment.

  One of the many and earlier results of this drive for Flemish emancipation was that all toponyms in Flanders reverted to their Dutch spelling. However, as this is a book in the English language we prefer to use the place-names as they were used and written at the time of the battle. Whoever does any reading or research on this tumultuous period in Western European history, be it in French or English, will inevitably run into the same – but now outmoded – spelling.

  Since then the Kingdom of the Belgians has come a long way and evolved into a federal state with three official languages: Dutch, French and German.

  To visualize the events recounted we included twenty-nine dedicated maps, spread throughout the book. But still, to the uninitiated, the names of places, hydrauli
c structures, canals and rivers might be daunting. To the layperson it is indeed confusing when the Nieuport Lock is in Furnes and the Furnes Lock in … Nieuport! We have therefore included in the map-index the present-day names in brackets. This will also assist readers who one day might want to check out the battlefield on a modern-day map, or even better, visit the various places that once were so gallantly defended by the three western armies against the invading enemy.

  In October 1914 Flanders was still experiencing a war of movement. The tactical situation changed hour by hour. So-called ‘action pictures’ are therefore rather uncommon. Everyone was still too busy advancing or retreating. These few pictures later found their way into official archives and only recently most of these institutions have started to charge for the use and publication of the pictures in their care.

  Because of this potential extra financial burden we have limited the photographic material in this book to pictures that were voluntarily provided to us without charge. As such the pictures in this book have either never been published before or were once published many years ago. Where possible we got written or verbal permission to use the illustrations. Our special thanks go to all who helped us with this task.

  In order to make the book enjoyable for people less familiar with military jargon, abbreviations have been kept to a minimum. Most were only used with the maps and in the bibliography. A list can also be found at the start of this book.

  NOTE

  1. The official language in Flanders and the Netherlands is one and the same: Dutch. The Flemish dialects were formerly known as ‘Dietsch’ and in that sense have also close ties with Low German or Plattdeutsch.

  Acknowledgements

  The following account is the first in-detail, English study of the run-up to and the subsequent military floods during the first phase of the First Battle of Ypres, in Belgium better know as The Battle for the Yser river. It covers the events during the month of October 19141 in the western part of Belgium. This work was conducted without financial assistance from public or private sponsors. Only the spontaneous and unselfish cooperation of tens of individuals and institutions, in and outside Belgium, allowed us to realize this book.

  It would take pages to mention and thank everyone who contributed to the result. Allow us though to name a few without whom this project would simply have been impossible. Our thanks to all for their continuing help, advice, encouragement and support.

  From the first hour there were Renée Beever and Mick Laurijssens, soon followed by Staff Colonel Maurice Paulissen, then Head of the Centre for Historical Documents of the Belgian Army in Brussels and his Chief Historian Jeroen Huygelier. Also in Brussels we immensely appreciate the help of Hervé Thys, son of the late Colonel Engineer Robert Thys, who opened the family archive for us.

  In Nieuport we are very grateful to many people, especially the now Honorary Citizens Jules and Bertha Callenaere-Dehouck and City Curator Walter Lelièvre.

  Finally it was our special friend Leo Van Riel and his extensive knowledge of graphic computer work that proved to be indispensable in getting the many maps printer-ready.

  NOTE

  1. This book was first published in Dutch in 2004 under the title: Oktober 1914. Het koninkrijk gered door de zee. [October 1914. The kingdom rescued by the sea.]

  Glossary

  AKP Archives of the Royal Palace, Brussels

  Bde Brigade

  BEF British Expeditionary Force

  Br N Div British Naval Division

  Btn Battalion

  Cav Cavalry

  CA Belgian Cavalry Division

  DAB French Army Detachment in Belgium (French: Détachement d’armée de Belgique)

  Div Division

  EFRA Expeditionary Force for the Relief of Antwerp

  EMA (French) Army Staff (French: Etat major de l’armée)

  FM French Marine Fusileers

  Ers Reserve (German: Ersatz)

  Fr French

  Ge German

  GHQ General Headquarters

  Gp Group

  HLN Flemish newspaper: Het Laatste Nieuws

  KLM-MRA Royal Museum of the Army, Brussels.

  LFL Flemish newspaper: La Flandre Liberale

  LO Liaison Officer

  Res Reserve

  Rgt Regiment

  RIT French Territorial Regiment

  SGR/CHD Centre for Historical Documents of the Belgian Army, Evere-Brussels (now SGRS S/A).

  Introduction Flanders’ Flood

  The young German soldiers were bewildered. This morning they had fiercely attacked and captured a trivial settlement dominated by a church and a windmill just across a slightly elevated railway track. Before daybreak their commander had said this would be the last significant hurdle to take in their persistent drive to capture the first French Channel Port, Dunkirk.

  Now, while this not unpleasant autumn day was drawing to an end, they were urgently being recalled. Obviously they were not fleeing from the enemy guns, but because of a more powerful, secretive enemy that was quietly turning the naked, flat land behind them into an inland sea. Hurrying nervously, they ran between the scattered remains of brick houses and wooden sheds back to the railway track.

  Before heading into the murky water one of the infantrymen noticed a nameplate on the rural station on the right hand side of the road: Ramscappelle it read.

  Only yesterday they had all felt upbeat, strong and especially unbeatable. Now a vast mass of icy, brownish water drove them back like Ramsch; inferior merchandise, junk being returned to its masters.

  After a forced march of half an hour, with the muddy water soaking their boots and socks, they passed a homestead surrounded by a large, square moat. At the entrance a placard read: ‘Great Hemme Farm’. The buildings were on somewhat higher ground and part of the moat itself was still visible. By now the water was slowly creeping up their legs and chilling them to the bone.

  Not far away to the left, several horse-drawn carriages were struggling to find their way through the landscape-turned-lake. Suddenly the horses lost ground and the wagons and animals disappeared in a treacherous, invisible waterway. The frightened coachmen managed to jump off the wagons and wrestle themselves onto firm ground, leaving their equipment and horses and fleeing in panic to the safety of the river levee in the distance.

  The Germans would never make it back to their homestead before Christmas as they had promised their loved ones.

  This is the comprehensive story, for the first time ever in the English language, of one of the few successful, large-scale retreats in military history. It is the remarkable tale of the conscript army of a small country, led by a devoted monarch. Almost succumbing under the beating of the mighty German siege artillery inside one of the most elaborate fortresses in the world, it managed to escape. Marching out to the coast it met with the relief force and at the very last minute, its exhausted young men turned and made a stand behind a small winding river. Nevertheless the enemy still seemed overwhelming.

  Then a handful of officers and men, guided by two middle-aged, simple civilians, turned the region into an inland sea. They succeeded in checking the brutal invader, not by fire, but by water.

  Both sides often used abandoned farm buildings in the inundated polder as reinforced listening posts.

  Nieuport 1914–1918, R. Thys, 1922.

  For King and Country

  In 1830, after the Belgian francophone uprising against Dutch rule in Brussels and the subsequent declaration of independence, the national congress voted to install a monarch at the head of its institutions. One of the members of the congress would call it: ‘A king by vote’.

  As such the Belgian head of state, unlike in other countries with a monarchy, is officially known as ‘The King of the Belgians’: – the king of the Belgian people – not the country.

  Article 68 of the Constitution declared the king as being the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Moreover it appeared that the members of the national congress wer
e not interested in foreign policy and would leave this up to their new head of state as the same article also stated that ‘the king could declare war, conclude peace and enter into alliances’.

  Here again is a fundamental difference with other monarchies. In times of crises, Belgian monarchs have always distinguished themselves by taking active control of the army in the defence of the country and its people.

  This had happened in 1831 with King Leopold I, immediately after independence of the country from the Netherlands and again in 1914 with King Albert 1.

  The thirty-nine year old king, rather shy and reserved took his inaugural oath to the Constitution very seriously as most people found out and appreciated only later. As such, when on 4 August 1914, the German Imperial armies dragged the small kingdom into an essentially Franco-Prussian feud, King Albert personally headed his army to defend the integrity and independence of his nation.

  Bound by a constitutional pledge of perpetual neutrality by the European powers of the day – Russia, Great Britain, France and Germany – the king steered a political and military course that aimed at getting the German armies out of the country, without in any way favouring the French ‘cause’. This irritated many Belgian politicians and a large part of the military establishment who saw a swift and close cooperation with the French (army) as a necessity to free the country from the invader. But the king knew his history lessons well and feared a post-war Belgium under French dominance as much as a German victory.

  This difference in opinion on the basic policy to follow, created tensions between the king and his personal advisers on one side and people in his High Command and some politicians on the other.

  Another article in the Constitution that would cause friction at the highest level was Article 64. This article said that no act by the king could be law unless a minister, who thereby took full responsibility, countersigned it. In normal circumstances this basic law would not cause any legal problem but when, in times of war, the king – as proscribed in Article 68 – would be ‘in the field’ it was not always evident that there would be a government minister close at hand to approve of every royal tactical or even strategic decision, let alone countersign!