For those of you currently struggling with all things grenades, here’s a cemetery for you (grenades, cemeteries, that’s some weird site you got there, boy).
In fact, it’s one of half-a-dozen on our itinerary when we return to Mont Kemmel,…
…this time visiting the burial grounds & memorials to be found to the west of the hill around Dranouter and Loker,…
…where we shall be concluding the story of Poilu Jean Parnin, who, at the end of April 1918, found himself in a trench perhaps crossing this very street on the outskirts of the village, as he and his exhausted colleagues attempted to stem the hordes of Germans sweeping down on them from Mont Kemmel, seen here in the background.
Coming soon!
Have got to say M have been struggling with all things grenade, must say I have been intrigued by the variety, style, methods of explosion etc., which has been informative, as I only knew of the oval shaped one that you pulled the pin out of and threw with great haste and hopefully accuracy, so it has been an education but have to admit I for one am glad the cemeteries are making a comeback look forward to reading them.
Which is exactly why I posted this little ‘coming soon’ post; I don’t forget that some of you might not find the grenades quite as interesting (although they have had beeeeg reading figures) and I don’t want you to feel left out (and between you and me, I need a bit of time to write the tours that appear on this site, so other stuff gives me that time). So you have learnt a bit about grenades, and more cemeteries are coming soonish, and all is well, I hope, with world of theBigNote.
thank good ness for this update- hand grenades are definitely not my thing
Nor were they the thing for those on the receiving end……anyway, I quite understand, and not too long to wait now for the ‘usual’ stuff (see my reply to Margaret). You will be pleased to know that my grenade collection is finite. I hope you got my reply to your Orkney email btw – I was, at the time, suffering, again, from inexplicable email problems which apparently resolved themselves after a few days – I could receive but couldn’t send. Except it said that I had sent various emails, but none apparently got through. I also hope you saw the Strathdearn memorial post – that is the final Scottish memorial until my next trip.
I have finally responded to your email
The grenades are fascinating (even more so the crazy contraptions invented to fling them further !) but I have been fretting about the fate of Jean Parnin ! 😉
Glad we will learn more on that soon…
Oh, you will…
Had hoped to get to Ypres and the Somme next month but with Belgium having the UK on their Red List and it seeming a real faff with testing before you can even come home again from France (or anywhere else for that matter) I think your posts will be much needed to fill that void for a while yet MF..
I know what you mean. I was hoping for November, but I have my doubts about that, frankly. In the meantime, I still have some good stuff stashed away – Vlamertinghe, Wulverghem, Neuve Chapelle, and a couple of other places, to keep us going. This time next year I might be struggling though……