Ypres Salient

Map showing topography and locations in the Ypres district, detailing British–French advances at Ypres, 1917

Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee. The city is overlooked by Kemmel Hill in the south-west and from the east by low hills running south-west to north-east with Wytschaete (Wijtschate), Hill 60 to the east of Verbrandenmolen, Hooge, Polygon Wood and Passchendaele (Passendale). The high point of the ridge is at Wytschaete, 7,000 yd (4.0 mi; 6.4 km) from Ypres, while at Hollebeke the ridge is 4,000 yd (2.3 mi; 3.7 km) distant and recedes to 7,000 yd (4.0 mi; 6.4 km) at Polygon Wood. Wytschaete is about 150 ft (46 m) above the plain; on the Ypres–Menin road at Hooge, the elevation is about 100 ft (30 m) and 70 ft (21 m) at Passchendaele. The rises are slight, apart from the vicinity of Zonnebeke, which has a 1:33 gradient. From Hooge and to the east, the slope is 1:60 and near Hollebeke, it is 1:75; the heights are subtle but have the character of a saucer lip around Ypres. The main ridge has spurs sloping east and one is particularly noticeable at Wytschaete, which runs 2 mi (3.2 km) south-east to Messines (Mesen), with a gentle slope to the east and a 1:10 decline to the west. Further south is the muddy valley of the Douve river, Ploegsteert Wood ("Plugstreet" to the British) and Hill 63. West of Messines Ridge is the parallel Wulverghem (Spanbroekmolen) Spur; the Oosttaverne Spur, also parallel, is to the east. The general aspect south of Ypres is of low ridges and dips, gradually flattening to the north into a featureless plain.[1]

In 1914, Ypres had 2,354 houses and 16,700 inhabitants inside medieval earth ramparts faced with brick and a ditch on the east and south sides. Possession of the higher ground to the south and east of the city gives ample scope for ground observation, enfilade fire and converging artillery fire. An occupier of the ridges also has the advantage that artillery positions and the movement of reinforcements and supplies can be screened from view. The ridge had woods from Wytschaete to Zonnebeke, giving good cover, some of notable size such as Polygon Wood and those later named Battle Wood, Shrewsbury Forest and Sanctuary Wood. The woods usually had undergrowth but fields in gaps between the woods were 800–1,000 yd (730–910 m) wide and devoid of cover. Roads in this area were usually unpaved, except for the main ones from Ypres, with occasional villages and houses. The lowlands west of the ridge were a mixture of meadow and fields with high hedgerows dotted with trees, cut by streams and ditches emptying into the canals. The Ypres–Comines Canal is about 18 ft (5.5 m) wide and the Yperlee about 36 ft (11 m); the main road to Ypres between Poperinge and Vlamertinge is in a defile, easily observed from the ridge.[2]

A salient in military terms is a battlefield feature that projects into an opponent's territory and is surrounded on three sides, making the occupying troops vulnerable. Throughout World War I along the Western Front, troops engaged in mine warfare, using tunnelling and trench strategies without coordinating their attacks with one another. Soldiers used tunnels and dugouts to shelter themselves, make their way safely to the front lines, relay messages, and launch offensive attacks on their enemies.

The Ypres Salient during the Second Battle of Ypres

In the aftermath of trench warfare, mine explosions, extensive tunnelling, craters and archaeological landmarks remain. Although many craters have been covered, built over, destroyed, or remodelled, some are still visible and can be preserved, such as The Bluff, a key location in the First Battle of Ypres and now a well-studied historical reserve at which artefacts were found. Using Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping, Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS), remote sensing and aerial photographs, more recent research and archaeological work have provided insight into the landscape, battle zones and tactics employed in the Ypres Salient. Analysis of craters at the site yielded information, confirming various historical accounts of counter-mines and hot spots and specifying when mining weapons were used in the Second Battle of Ypres as well as how the Battle of Messines was important in changing the geography of the frontlines main conflicts occurred.[3]

• Barton, P.; et al. (2004). Beneath Flanders Fields - The Tunnellers' War 1914–1918. Staplehurst: Spellmount. ISBN 978-1-86227-237-8.
• Dendooven, D; Dewilde, J. (1999). The Reconstruction of Ieper - A Walk Through History. Openbaar Kunstbezit in Vlaanderen. ISBN 978-90-76099-26-2.
• Holt, T; Holt, V (2003). Major and Mrs Holt's Battlefield Guide to the Ypres Salient (Pen and Sword ed.). Leo Cooper. ISBN 978-0-85052-551-9.

• FirstWorldWar.com
• Association for World War Archaeology; information about World War I excavations in the Ypres Salient
• Booknotes interview with Winston Groom on A Storm in Flanders: The Ypres Salient, 1914-1918—Tragedy and Triumph on the Western Front, September 1, 2002.