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Ypres Cathedral in ruins, British lory in foreground
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| Title | Ypres Cathedral in ruins, British lory in foreground |
| Date of Original | 191- |
| Description | Front of church standing in ruins by sanctuary demolished with other buildings in ruins in background. Truck and cannon in foreground. |
| Ordering Information | Consult: http://library.ndsu.edu/ndsuarchives/duplication-services |
| General Subject | Military
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| Subject (LCTGM) | Ruins
Churches
Catholic churches
Trucks
Cannons
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| Subject (LCSH) | World War, 1914-1918
World War, 1914-1918 - Destruction & pillage
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| Location | Ypres (Belgium)
Belgium
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| Decade | 1910-1919
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| Item Number | 2030.7.9 |
| Format of Original | Stereographs
Gelatin silver prints
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| Dimensions of Original | 9 x 18 cm. |
| Publisher of Original | Keystone View Company
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| Place of Publication | Meadville (Pa.)
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| Transcription | "Ypres Cathedral in ruins, British Lorry in foreground. The once magnificent Cathedral of St. Martin's, imposing even in its ruins, was before the war a landmark visible for miles as it rose above the quaint Flemish roofs of Ypres. The main structure, built between 1221 and 1254, was surmounted about 1433 by the massive stone tower whose lower part, battered almost beyond recognition, still rises before us to a height of more than 100 feet, all that is left of the original 190 feet. The fact that it was so conspicuous made it a favorite target for the guns of the Germans, ranged for four years on the northeast, the east and the southeast sides of Ypres. We are looking almost due east at the cathedral. Behind it in that direction the German front line trenches are only about 4, 000 yards distance from where we stand. Zonebeke Abraham Heights, Passchendaele Ridge and many other places celebrated in the many firece struggles around Ypres, lie on beyond. The famous Cloth Hall, standing beside the cathedral, is just to our right. In the shell-swept confines of the crumbling city during the war any refuge from projectiles was welcome. From time to time many British soldiers, ignorant or unmindful of the condition of the shattered cathedral walls, sheltered themselves in the ruins only to be buried beneath the avalanche of stones brought down by the next shell. In the spring of 1919, after the armistice, British burial parties estimated that 150 bodies still remained beneath the huge mass of stones which we see between the tower and the archway fruther back"--Text printed on back of stereograph.
"18786." |
| Notes | Title printed on front of stereograph.
Photographer unknown. |
| Repository Institution | North Dakota State University Libraries, Institute for Regional Studies
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| Repository Collection | World War I Stereograph Collection 2030
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| Collection Finding Aid | Consult: http://hdl.handle.net/10365/1206 |
| Credit Line | Institute for Regional Studies, NDSU, Fargo (2030.7.9) |
| Language | eng
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| Digital ID | rs001213 |
| Original Source | Stereograph |
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