The Lille Gate, Ieper (Ypres)
The Lille Gate is one of the many entrances of the city which has been preserved after numerous alterations and reconstructions.
Origins of the Lille Gate
|
In the early days of the town's history, when it was a small settlement on the Iepere river, there were two entrances. One in the north and one in the south of the settlement. The Lille Gate is the original southern gateway.
This entrance to the city was originally called the Mesenpoort, that is, the doorway to Mesen (Messines).
The round towers are the oldest surviving part of the stone ramparts, dating from 1385 and the Burgundian period of the city's history. The bridge over the gateway was added during later modifications to the city's fortifications.
The Lille Gate is also a water gateway. The river Ieperlee (previously known by its French name of Yprelee) springs from a lock under the western round tower and flows under the city from south to north through a vaulted waterway.
First World War Headquarters
Between 1914 and 1918 the round towers provided protection against the German artillery shells and the British Army used the towers as a location for various military units' headquarters.
|
Imperial War Graves Commission Signs
|
On the inner wall of the gateway leading to the southern Ypres Salient, there are five of the original Imperial War Graves Commission signs for 13 British military cemeteries. These signs date back to the first formal signposting by the Commission when pilgrims began to travel to visit the battlefields after the Great War.
The Imperial War Graves Commission is now called the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. It is the agency responsible for the maintenance and care of war graves of British Forces and former Colonial and Dominion Forces buried throughout the world.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission