Thank you for the link which reminded me of my visit to this site a few years back. The area is completely pockmarked with craters and much of the main battle area roped off due to the danger from much unexploded ordnance.
As with all these sites it is hard to really envisage the scale of the slaughter that occurred in such a modest area. Each square yard of ground is a most poignant reminder of the dreadful cost of this war.
As you drive away from the main tourist site the scale of the battlefield is obvious as amidst the woods and scrubland alongside the main road heading towards France are the remains of yet more craters and shell holes now all but hidden by the undergrowth. There is scarcely a level piece of ground to be seen.
Many other sites evoke these mixed feelings of the bravery of the troops and the emptiness of the senseless loss of life during this conflict.
One site that particularly moved me was Mouquet Farm on the Somme where the Australians took many many thousands of casualties trying to gain control of this farm. When you look at the area fought over it is little more than that of a large field.
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