In 1914 Spanbroekmolen was the site of a windmill (“molen” is the Dutch word for “mill”). At the end of the First Battle of Ypres in November 1914 the German Front Line was established in this location on the high ground of the Messines Ridge. Between then and 7 June 1917 the Germans spent a year and a half developing well-established positions here with concrete bunkers and strong defensive positions. Most importantly, the position had very good views across the lower lying British positions.

The mine at Spanbroekmoelen was started by 171st Tunneling Company, Royal Engineers, on 1^st January. Six months later the mine was finished. To celebrate the mine’s completion two officers made their way into the chamber with four bottles of champagne and drinking glasses. The main charge for the mine was made up of 50 LB (pound) boxes of ammonol, totalling 90,000 lbs (pounds). The main charge was finally completed on 28 June 1916. The mine was to be ready to blow at the launch of the major attack on the German lines on the Messines Ridge.

The mine crater was purchased for Toc H * by Lord Wakefield in the 1920s to be preserved as a memorial site on the Ypres Salient battlefields. The mine crater has subsequently been named the “Pool of Peace” and is still the property of Toc H in Poperinge.

Lone Tree Cemetery is close to the Spanbroekmolen (Lone Tree) Crater, one of the nineteen which were made immediately before the infantry attack at the Battle of Messines in June 1917. Nearly all the graves in the cemetery are those of soldiers who fell on the first day of the battle. The cemetery contains 88 First World War burials. The cemetery was designed by J R Truelove.

Source: The Great War and Commonwealth War Graves

*  Toc H (TH) is an international Christian movement. The name is an abbreviation for Talbot House, Poperinge,  “Toc” signifying the letter T in the signals spelling alphabet used by the British Army in World War I.

Lone Tree Cemetery