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Posted by vera1950 (U9920163) on Tuesday, 21st July 2009
I often wonder how names of some of the places on and around the WW1 battlefields and cemeeteries got their names.
Some of course are obvious but some leave me trying to figure it all out.
EG. around the Plugsteert Wood area near Ieper there is-
Hyde park corner.
Strand
Birdcage
Bedford
to name a few,all London places -why?
A cemetery in Plugsteert wood is called Toronto Ave. but the entire cemetry is inhabited by Australians.
On the Sthn side of the wood is Lancashire cottage.
Near Arras -
Orange trench
Happy valley
Cuckoo passage.
Rookery
Boothams
Tank cem
On the Somme-
Sausage valley
Mash valley
Lancashire dump
Owl Trench
Danzig alley
Norfolk cem
These ar just a few.
I find it fascinating .
Dartmoor cem
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
I guess if you are poor b*gger who had to dig a trench, you could call it what you liked. . .
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
verahowarth,
Greetings. As the complexity of the trench system advanced it was obvious that map reverences were totally inadequate for orientation. Thus the unofficial method of nomenclature was adopted. Originally most were named on a satirical basis and usually by the officers. It needs to be remembered that for most of the time the occupants faced long periods of boredom and the manufacture of 'Street' signs and directions were one way to relieve that. Of course The Anglo-Saxon sense of humour would naturally pick the most inappropriate names for 'their' trench, but sometimes the names were indicative of the nastier and brutal side of the war.
In WW2 signposts were erected all over the world showing the various mileages to home cities. As there is at the South Pole.
Regards Spuggles.
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
An example from your list: Sausage Valley was named after a German observation balloon that floated there for some time. Then some wag decided that the next dip in the ground (about half a mile to the north) had just got to be Mash Valley. Sausage and Mash ...
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
No prizes for guessing the etymology of "Hellfire Corner"!
BTW the other thing was the anglicisation of foreign placenames - Ploegsteert became 'Plugstreet', Etaples 'Eat Apples', Ypres 'Wipers', etc.
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
mike aleander
my grandad was at some poit in the war i EAT APPLES.Commonly known as the bullring.
I believe that was based on this place.
Link to this forum: Names of places on the battlefieLds in WW1
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