Battle of Messines

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The Battle of Messines was launched on 7 June 1917 by British General Herbert Plumer's second army, which included the 16th (Irish) Division and the 36th (Ulster) Division, near the villages of Mesen (in French Messines, as it was on most maps at that time). The target of the offensive was a ridge running north from Messines village past Wytschaete village (which the Irish Divisions overran), a natural stronghold southeast of Ypres, a town in the West Flanders province of Belgium. General Plumer had begun plans to take the Messines Ridge a year before, in early 1916. The attack was also a harbinger to the much larger Third Battle of Ypres, known as Passchendaele, which began on 31 July 1917.

Over a period beginning more than a year before the attack, the attackers had tunnelled under the German trenches and planted almost 455 tonnes (1,000,000 lb) of ammonal there. A heavy bombardment of the German positions was initiated and then halted. The defenders returned to their positions expecting an assault to follow. The detonation of the explosives all timed for 3:10am, killed approximately 10,000 German soldiers^{[citation needed]}. It said to have been heard as far away as London and Dublin, and was possibly the loudest man-made noise made up to that date. ^{[citation needed]} In Switzerland the explosions registered as an earthquake. The real attack then followed.

Not all of the explosives went off. Two of the original 21 mines failed to ignite [1] for one reason or another. On 17 July 1955, a lightning strike set off one of the remaining mines. There were no human casualties, but one cow was killed. The 21st mine is believed to have been found, but no attempt has been made to remove it. Several large water-filled craters still mark the original positions of the German trenches. A New Zealand War Monument and the Island of Ireland Peace Park War Memorial are located on the south side of the Messines village (connect on external link below).

Western Front
Frontiers – Liège – Antwerp – Great Retreat – Race to the Sea – Neuve Chapelle – 2nd Ypres – 2nd Artois – Hill 70 – 3rd Artois – Loos – Verdun – Hulluch – Somme – Arras – Vimy Ridge – 2nd Aisne – Messines – Passchendaele – Cambrai – Michael – Lys – 3rd Aisne – Belleau Wood – 2nd Marne – Château-Thierry – Hamel – Hundred Days

To read an account of the experiences of an ordinary soldier at Messines ridge, as recounted in his letters home, http://www.wwar1.blogspot.com

[edit] Quotes

Gentlemen, we may not make history tomorrow, but we shall certainly change the geography.

– General Herbert Plumer, remark to his staff the evening before the attack

[edit] External links

• The Battle for Messines Ridge
• First World War.com - A more detailed overview of the battle with links to present day pictures of the battlefield