Walking in the Footsteps of the British Expeditionary Force 2008 to 2009

Hey up Mel

 

Hey Andy.... see I do drop in from time to time!

 

And upto 18 posts

 

I might well take you up on that offer mate......I was down at Dobles Honda today as they are at the bottom of the hill where I live and they have some nice bikes, I love the look of the new Fireblade but that pillion seat is not going to go down to well with the Mrs........but I do like the CBR1300

 

Thanks for the excellent, informative photos and captions. I last visited the site of the massacre in 2000 with my school battlefields tour when its future was in considerable doubt. Someone told me that the pond had been filled in to make way for the new belvedere, so I'm glad to see that it's still there. It should be noted that there are several different, rather contradictory accounts of what actually happened to Bert Evans and Captain Lynn Allen. For example see the book 'Massacre on the Road to Dunkirk' by Leslie Deakin for some of the eye-witness accounts given after the war to the judicial enquiry. The BBC Docu-Drama 'Dunkirk' has Lynn Allen shot outside the barn protesting to an SS officer. Some of the men at Escquelbecq killed in the massacre used to have the wrong date of death on their headstones. I pointed this out to the CWGC and they said that they were aware of this and would correct the mistakes when the headstones were next replaced. I am planning to revisit these sites (and others) on my 2010 'Retreat to Dunkirk' school tour, God willing.

 

Cheers Mark. The details about Burt Evans and Capt. Allen I got from these which are located at the site.


The story of events are hung in the barn too.

Cheers

 

I know its nearly a year ago since your posting of your excellent photos of Cassel/Esquebecq but I just chanced upon the posting browsing my old links & favourites.
I have one thing to say: What better tribute to the fallen & the memory of those times & people than those immaculately kept memorials and the interest in those times and people so evident & kept alive in your posting?
Hope you had a fulfilling return visit.

 

Cheers Les....Very Kind of you.

If my passport arrives in the next two weeks I'm going back again next month to the other massacre site, a blockhouse outside Cassel to name a few places.

Regards
Andy

 

Leaving Dover again at stupid o'clock almost a year to the day, this time destination Dunkirk.


Once on French soil we stopped to confirm why we were here !


You can see Andrea wasn't as enthusiastic as me

 

On our drive south we stopped for the first of many 'Then and Nows'.

Then


Now

Taken near the Fort Rouge crossroads (Now a roundabout) D933 from Saint-Omer to Cassel. Our car standing in for the PzKpfw 35 (t).

 

From there we had some unfinished buisness at Cassel but before anything else could be done - The war had to wait whilst we had tea in Cassel.


Another 'Then and Nows' after morning tea in Cassel town center.

Then


Now


Cassel was placed under the command of Brigadier Somerset and as well as the two more well known units defending the town, 2/Glosters and 4/Oxf and Bucks, Sumerset also had some Vickers machine gunners from a territorial battalion of the Chesires and some French anti-tank and machine gun units. Their mission was quite simple, Somerset was ordered to hold the town 'at all costs'. They were to be known as 'Somerforce'.

 

Your co-pilot doesn't seem to be to keen on 'Blitzkrieg in the West' - Could I recommend 'Blitzkrieg à l'Ouest' by the same author ? Same format but lots of different photos and a French text to keep 'em reading for hours

 

The next 'Then and Now' was in Cassel too. This one was taken with the church behind Andrea. You can see the Ox and Bucks and Glouchestershire Regiment's memorials on the right.

Then


Now


After checking my 'equity card' was still valid I decided to stand in for the unknown German soldier.

 

If you find the Guy Quad don't forget to give me a ring. I'll be there first thing !

Ugly and difficult to drive - Great Stuff

 

Some more shots of significance from around the town of Cassel

The Northern Gate.


The Battalion HQ was situated in the building now occupied by Credit Du Nord just around the corner from the Northern Gate.


The houses and buildings that made up the perimeter of Cassel were linked together by demolition and digging. The soldiers kept busy themselves, knowing the Germans were closing on Cassel eliments of Sumerforce were sandbagging, boarding-up windows, caging, making holes in walls for communication and firing. Roads in and out were blocked and the French anti-tank guns were strategically placed to defend the town.

However Captain Lovett picks up the story of the French guns:
'Soon after, a report was received that these guns were now unmanned and I was sent out to verify the truth in this - it was true, unfortuantely, but not only had the men disappeared but they had taken the firing pins with them to render the guns useless'.

The Glosters used the Bank below as their Battalion HQ (Below) and the Ox and Bucks established theirs in the local Gendarmerie.


As a result of effective communication between the Glosters and Ox and Bucks a defence perimeter was put out around the town with the Glosters taking the western portion of the town. B Company, Glosters linked with Ox and Bucks on their right and stretched along the perimeter to the north west to join D company which was covering the western approaches. To the south and south east C Company was holding a more difficult area due to fields of fire being poor, the outskirts of the town to the south had nunmerous walls and other obstacles. The CO, Major Gilmore decided to keep A Company in reserve.

Diagram of 2 Gloster positions which was sketched by Captain E. Jones whilst he was a PoW.

The first of the reserves to be sent out was Lieutenant Cresswell with No.1 Platoon, A Company to occupy a blockhouse a few miles north of Cassel on the road to Dunkirk. The rest of the reserves in the form of A Company went to Zuytpene under the command of Major Hardman. D Comapny of the Ox and Bucks was deployed to Bavinchove a few miles south-east of Zuytpene. All of them were given the same order - 'Break up any enemy assault before it reaches Cassel'.

 

The Cemetery in Cassel containing French and Czech soldiers as well as British soldeirs.

 

From Cassel we drove to Hazebrouck for this 'Then and Now'

Then


Now

 

We had trouble finding this one just outside Cassel in a village called Winnezeele and the shot was too good to give up on so my co-pilot/navigator pulled out the stops and delivered the goods !

Then


Now

 

Now heading North we went to Le Peck to look for the Blockhouse that was defended by 2nd Lt. R.W. Cresswell and No.1 Platoon, A Company of 2nd Battalion The Glouchestershire Regiment.


Around 1800hrs on 26th May the Germans started to attack the blockhouse held by 2nd Lt Cresswell and his platoon. Soon after they were cut off and alone with contact with the rest of the battalion lost.


After 4 days on near continuous fighting with ammunition and rations dangerously low the situation for Cresswell and his men had become desperate.


Thanks to Croonaert (Dave) for the next bit of information.
On the 29th May a captured wounded British officer, Captain Lorraine, was taken from a field ambulance and forced at gunpoint to attempt to trick 2nd Lt Cresweel and his men to come out of the blockhouse.


Captain Lorraine approached the blockhouse and told 2nd Lt. Cresswell not to answer him and discreetly pointed up to warn him that there was German soldiers on the roof of the blockhouse waiting to ambush them when they came out.



Captain Lorraine withdrew back to the German lines and the fighting continued, notably most of the Germans if not all, on the roof became casualties in the fighting that continued.



Finally on 30th May, with more Germans on the roof and the blockhouse on fire 2nd Lt. Cresswell told his men to attempt to break out and make for Dunkirk.


A successful escape was nigh on impossible and the survivors were captured by the Germans.


Both Creswell and Lorraine were captured and survived the war. They were both awarded the Military Cross for their actions between the 26th and 30th May 1940.



At this point I must say thank you to the very friendly and kind unknown Farmer who was ploughing his crops around the blockhouse and gave me permission to go across his field and inside the bunker.

 

Excellent photos, Andy.