Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Fascinating chronicle into the town of Ypres during World War I |
| Disadvantages: |
Upsetting to see the evidence of wasted life |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
INTRODUCTIONLast year I had my first spell of working in the Netherlands and one weekend with the help of a friend visiting who'd hired a car, we thought about going to Ypres, Belgium, scene of much trench warfare in World War One. On out way to the Tyne Cot war cemetery (which are quite awe inspiring in themselves), we spent a little time in the pretty main square of Ypres, where we chanced upon this museum just behind the square.
YPRES (IEPER)Lying near to the French border, the Belgian town of Ypres (the French name) or Ieper (Flemish) was the scene of much trench warfare during WWI. It was in fact a prosperous town pre-war and was a key place because it led the way towards the rest of Belgium and France for the Germans. There were several big battles as both sides needlessly wasted much human life, the most notable being the Third Battle of Ypres (21 July to 6 November 1917, also known as the Battle of Passchendaele, where Allied forces recaptured the Passchendaele ridge east of the city, at the loss of man lives.
LOCATIONThe museum is on the 2nd floor of the old cloth hall in the centre of Ypres, which is a gritty looking and yet attractive building. The building dates back to the Middle Ages.
THE MUSEUMEverything is marked in 4 languages - Flemish (more or less the same as Dutch), German, English and French.
The displays of the museum are marked out in some kind of chronological order, where you can follow the progress of the war, and how it affected the soldiers, local populace and the Belgian population as a whole. There is also a brief history of Ypres. One thing I really enjoyed was on your way in, you are given a ticket with a barcode and a name, where you follow a certain person's story through the war; there are certain points where you swipe the card and on a screen you are shown a presentation about a certain part of their life. Mine was about some philanthropic fellow who assisted the displaced by feeding and housing them, follow his story from pre-war to the rest of his life.
There are all sorts of artifacts, such as uniforms, weapons, vehicles and even some old signs from the trenches, which were given English names and it's odd to see these normal looking metal plates in such a context. I also found extracts from letters home from the soldiers both fascinating and poignant.
The mix of personal accounts and historical contexts makes for a fascinating journey though time; you get a real feeling of how it was for the people involved, civillians and soldiers alike. There is even a "tunnel" where you can experience what it might have been like in a trench in the form of noise.
I am no expert on the Great War but came out of the museum knowing a great deal more, and together with the trip to the War Graves it was quite a profound experience. The museum also puts everything into a wider historical context as well as the details of the war itself, which really makes you understand the causes and consequences.
CONCLUSIONIn summary I would highly recommend this museum if you are in Ypres for the war graves and Menin Gate (inscribed with the names of soldiers without a grave). It certainly makes you think of the sacrifices made for us all that time ago; more so the waste of those sacrifices less than a generation later in the WWII.
PRICES AND OPENING HOURSFor museum and exhibition:
Adults - 8 Euro
Children ages 7-15 - 4 Euros
Children ages below 7 - Free
Families - 19 Euro
1st April - 15th November - open every day 10am - 6pm
16th November - 31st March - Tuesday-Sunday, 10am - 5pm
CONTACT INFORMATIONWebsite - http://www.inflandersfields.be/#museum
Email - flandersfields@ieper.be
Telephone - +32 (0) 57 239 220
