13.—Death Trench and the “Cavalier” field work.

When the battle of the Yser was over, our first front line was running along the river in front of Dixmude in a direction due North-West up to the kilometer 16. There the river Yser, makes a sudden bend and our front was leaving the river side to prolonge itself westward, leaning on the Roode-Poort farm thus joining the Nieuport-Dixmude railway line.

That particular point of kilometer n^o 16, which ought to have been on the early days of stabilized warfare, a stronghold of our defensive scheme, struck our high command, as being rather weak. The decision was then taken to strengthen it.

A line of main-guards already covered the Belgian positions from Nieuport up to Oud-Stuyvekenskerke, when General Jacquet decided, in order to cover himself at the kilometer n^o 16, to prolonge that line by adding to it an element, the advanced posts of which would be placed along the river Reigersvliet and that right up to its mouth.

To carry that mission through it was thought necessary to rush the petrol tanks, the mystery of which, more than their power had already given to the sector a fair renown.

Death trench and Riders’work-Operations which took place from up May to October 1915 North and East of kilometer 16 of the river Yser.

The 1^st foot jagers, shouldered by the 3^rd divisional artillery and accompanied by detachements of pioneers, tried the operations.

A keen fight developed for three long days, from up the 9^th to the 12^th May 1915 [^[2]], in a horrible ground, the main part being under water, and cut up by deep and broad ditches and shell holes full of water, offering no shelter whatever to the rafales of machine-guns and the harassing fires of the artillery which were hacking our gallant boys down. The attack failed in spite of their courage, and the losses endured.

[2]. At the same time, the 3^d foot jagers began the fight on the right bank, succeeding to establish a bridge-head South-East of kilometer 16. The enemy clung against it and the daily casualties were such that it was decided to reduce its development and manning. In 1917 few portions of trenches running along the right bank remained solely held and were the starting point of the raids carried on against the enemy’s organizations, right up to the end of the war. A few shelters, last witnesses of our occupation, are still standing and will be kept up for the future.

The 1^st foot jagers alone had lost in that action 10 officers and five hundred and fifty men, killed or wounded. The plan was not given up, but tactics was changed. The ground which had been captured was hurriedly fitted up, while a platoon of a tunneling company was set at task on the bank of the Yser to resume the advance by sap-work. The mining was progressing satisfactorily when it was realized that on the German side a similar work was on, which, in less than a fortnights time reduced to few yards the distance separating the Belgian saphead from the enemy’s.

On the 27^th of May 1915, during the relieve, and taking the advantage of a pitch dark night and protected by a violent bombardment, a group of Germans jumped in our trench placing a machine-gun section in it. The enfilading fire of those guns caused heavy casualties to the 9^th line regiment which delivered a counter-attack.

After useless efforts, the only alternative left was to push actively forward the organization of the remaining portion of the trench so as to render it able to resist, notwithstanding the achievement of the previous object, it is to say the strengthening of the Yser salient at kilometer 16.

From time to time, the enemy tried to attack the trench but each time was repulsed by spontaneous counter-strokes. The enormous casualties suffered, either by the bombardments or by the numerous raids, carried out by the enemy, against the trench, made it deserve the name of: “Death Trench”. (Boyau de la Mort.)

In September 1915, the more urgent works of the Death Trench were nearly finished and could easely suffice to the defence of the left bank of the river at kilometer n^o 16. The attention of the engineers was then driven on to the construction of the “Cavalier”, work which was to complete the above mentioned defence, by securing it against all attempts of the enemy to cross the river.

The characteristic features of the “Cavalier” comes from the working condition it had to be submitted to, it is to say, to combine the defence as to fit or better to match in the most perfect way to the one of the “Death trench” thus forming a center of the highest possible resistance.

The “Cavalier” in itself presents two different and parallel lines, the first one on the level with the ground, to serve the purpose of round way and communication line, the second, above level thus dominating the whole region. The latter trench is the firing one, the overlooking position of which permitting to carry out enfilading and plunging fires upon the two banks of the river Yser as well as in the Death Trench itself, and on the enemy’s organization round kilometer n^o 16.

The dead angles of that position were under machine-gun fire and later, automatic rifles were placed at the entrance of the Death Trench, and also in the one connecting it with the “Cavalier”.

The building up of the “Cavalier” was long and cost to our sappers and infantrymen many a toilsome days and many a casualties. Seeing those provoking works, the German indeed did not remain inactive, they frequently ruined our works with their artillery and minenwerfers, inflicting to our troops awful losses.

The close of 1915 marked the end of the grounding of the accessory defences. The emplacements for trench mortars, machine-guns pits were rising little by little, the dug-out for the officer in Command of the “Cavalier” sector, was gradually coming to shape, and the shelters were rising from out the soil.

It was then decided to reduce the occupation of the “Death Trench”.

On October 11^th 1915, the bank of the Yser was blown up by a mine at about 275 meters in front of kilometer 16, thus opening a gap 6 or 8 meters in length, which connected the Yser to the flooded area. The Northern portion of the trench was filled up and then abandoned.

Three bombing teams, garrisoned by day time the thus shortened line.

Our men had become first class bomb throwers and feeling themselves well shouldered by the Van Deuren mortars (Belgian Stokes Guns) were full of confidence and never feared their opponents.

In 1916 the organization of the “Cavalier” completes itself and becomes a real redoubt. The two flights of the work is provided with offensive and defensive weapons, as well as with liaison material of the most diverse nature. Concrete shelters for the men have taken the place of those built with logs, which so often were bombed to ruins by the enemy. A post of visual signalling was placed so as to maintain a constant contact with the commander of the sector.

May 1916 was to be a tragic month for the kilometer 16 sector.

From up the 2^nd on to the 22^nd, the German switched on the “Death Trench” a fire of the most terrific power, and hurling troops forward they managed to get a foot-hold in our position, but nothing daunted, a counter-attack winged them at once back, by dint of grenades fights and sharp hand to hand struggles.... The enemy fled, he had not even had time to take his dead and wounded back with him.

In July 1916, an artillery observation-post was established at the “Cavalier”. The camouflage section came and erected there a strong steel cabin, loopholed towards the enemy side, and also provided with a periscope. A telephone wire was connecting that post to the Divisional Artillery Commander.

But the month of may with its hard and bloody days the men had to contend with, were not to be forgotten, and a keen wish for vengeance was nursed by every one.

Was the No “One” enemy trench not presenting itself to us in a similar way as our “Death Trench” to him? In fact, we were on the bridge-head on the right bank. The attack and destruction of that line was decided.

On July 18^th 1916, after that several reconnaissances had made during the preceding nights, and thorough destruction fire switched on to the trench, a detachment of n^o 4 company of the IV^th Bat. of the 2^nd line Regiment, under the command of Lieutenants Loyse and Desenfans stormed it. The object of the raid was not to remain there, but the duty of the raiding-party was to “clean the place up” and keep it free of Germans a sufficient length of time to blow all the concrete shelters up, to render them unhabitable. The “cleaning up” was thoroughly done, but unfortunately Lieutenant Loyse having been dangerously wounded, could not give the signal which was to start the blowing of the charges, that sapper sergeant Billiet had placed, after having himself taken an ample share in the first part of the show.

This raid is recorded as an example of the kind. All the dead and wounded of the party were brought back to our lines.

The enthusiasm was at its highest, the confidence kindled, the regiment avenged.

The sector was calm for a good while.

The 17^th of October 1916, the German, roused once again, opened on our line, at kilometer 16, the most powerful bombardment, foreboding a new attack. But our gunners were on the watch, they directed at once a counter-bombardment so violently efficient that it must have taken out from the enemy’s mind the slightest wish to jump out of his haunts.

Ten days later, the 2^d line regiment decided to do away with the “One” enemy trench, for good and all. From up the 27^th on to the 31^st of October detachment raided by night the accursed trench, they undertook the destruction of the shelters, turning the whole of No “One” line into real havoc.

In the course of the years 1917 and 1918, the life at the kilometer 16 quietened down, the intervals between the bombardments and mortar duals lengthened, and were replaced by intermittant artillery and hand grenades fights.

The “Cavalier and Death Trench” received then their final improvements. The first observation cabin having been demolished by gun fire, on April the 4^th 1917, a new one in concrete took its place, the upper trench became a platform, the liaison and signal post provided with ground telegraphy. The automatic rifles and bomb throwers multiplied.

The Death Trench was provided with an alternative straight communication line. A light wooden railway track was layed, to enable transport and evacuation by means of the small trucks. Numerous “concrete-brick” shelters were created.

Finally the head of the trench was turned into a deathtrap, surrounded by wolf’s holes and barbed wires, that point was only manned by day time by snipers sheltered in a small concrete sentry box.

The trap was separated from the death trench by a monolithe concrete dug-out of a rather peculiar shape. That shelter was fitted with a heavy steel door, and loopholed to enable hand grenade throwing and automatic rifle’s firing. A vibrating connected the little redoubt with the Commander of the “Cavalier”.

In case that the enemy managed to enter the trap or to reach our trench, the garrison of the fortlet was to shut itself up in it and resist from within during a length of time sufficient to be relieved by a counter-attack delivered by the “Cavalier” which had been alerted by the buzzer.

During the Franco-British offensive of October 1917 numerous fires were carried out by our artillery to prepare the eventual cooperation of the Belgian forces. That artillery action brought on to us energetic retaliations which did a lot of damages to the line at Roode-Poort.

The numerous raids of our troops in the German lines proved the efficiency of our fire, which had reduced the enemy’s trenches to mere ruins.

When the 1917 offensive was stopped the life resumed its normal and dull course; the 5^th infantry division was set at work to repair the damages and restore to our positions their former power.

Our attack of September 1918 had a repercussion upon the whole sector overlooked by the Cavalier.

The first battle had brought the Belgian Army on the Clercken ridge. The intention to hinge the new front to the old one including the Dixmude town, induced the 5^th line Regiment to get hold of Trench “One”, “111”, as well as of the first work North of Dixmude. And this was to be the only alteration brought on the front round kilometer 16.

From the 15^th to the 17^th of October, under the victorious onrush of the second battle, the front was split up from Nieuport to Dixmude and the Germans were compelled to a hurried retreat.

The front of the Yser was definitively cleared, the Rider and the Death Trench had ended their glorious mission.

It is important to note the powerful organizations of the enemy, facing the “Death Trench”, notably the enormous concrete of German sap-heads on the leftbank of the Yser, with their iron-plated loopholes and firing ranges, overlooking all the surrounding districts.

The Rider is a work of the greatest interest. It may be considered as a small museum concerning the trench warfare. In the minimum space it utilized in a most judicious way all defensive and offensive implement such as accessory defences and all kinds of liaison systems, which were coordinated to bring the highest efficiency.

It was also the witness of the magnificent and sustained stoïcism on the part numerous Belgian soldiers who succeeded each other to defend it.

The Death Trench is a sacred spot, sacred by the acts of courage and heroism that were accomplished there, and sacred by the blood that was shed here, it is the tomb of hundreds of brave heroes.