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 no 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 no 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 1st foot jagers, shouldered by the 3rd divisional artillery and accompanied by detachements of pioneers, tried the operations.
A keen fight developed for three long days, from up the 9th to the 12th 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 3d 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 1st 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.