1528) "Striking Cemeteries" ("Cemetieres Remarkquables"), Belgium: Bpost (Belgium Post) has issued five stamps of 9.80 Euros depicting Cemetries: Date of Stamp set issue: 26.10.2020:
This is an unusual set of stamps from Bpost (Belgium Post). It is on five cemeteries in Belgium, almost all of which contain graves of soldiers who were casualties in both World Wars I & II. The cemeteries covered in this stamp set are - Antwerp, Gent, Laken or Laeken, Mons and Court St.Etienne.
Several Indians fought with the Allies in the Belgian theatre. It seems that some of the fallen Indian officers/soldiers are interred in one or more of these cemeteries under differently pronounced/assigned names, as they were mistaken for British/Allied soldiers by the Germans.
There is the case of an Indian Flying Ace Indra Lal Roy "Laddie", who shot down at least 10 German/enemy aircraft (9 within 13 days) during World War I, who was killed over Carvin on 22.07.1918, at the age of 19 years, in a dogfight and is interred at Estevelles Communal Cemetery in Pas-de-Calais, France. His was found by the German forces and interred in a grave which was marked with a British sounding name, till his identity was established several years later and the headstone changed with the correct credentials.
India Post has honoured him with two postage stamps - One - a Rs.3.00 stamp issued in 1988 and the other as part of a series titled "Indians in First World War" in 2019.
There are several groups which help families to identify the remains of soldiers who are interred here.
Schoonselhof Cemetery, Antwerp:
Antwerp was the seat of Belgian Government from 17.08.1914 to 07.10.1914.
Towards the end of August, the city was one of the strong positions on the Allied left flank and by the middle of September, a position of critical importance.
It was defended by fortress troops and the greater part of the Belgian Field Army and the Royal Naval Air Service used its aerodrome.
On 27.09.1914, the Germans laid siege to Antwerp and during the first week of 10/1914 the Royal Navy Division entered the city to defend it.
On 09.10.1914, the position was abandoned by the British troops against an onslaught of numerically superior Germen forces. The city remained under German occupation till the end of World War I.
In 05/1940, during World War II, German Forces returned to Belgium and occupied Antwerp until its liberation by the Allies on 04.09.1944. The town and port were secured, but it was some weeks before the entire area was cleared of German resistance.
101 Allied fallen personnel in World War I, were buried in the cemetery, some of them were brought in from other burial grounds in the area after the Armistice (17 were brought in from Lierre German Cenetery, 1 from Bouchout-Les-Lier Churchyard, 3 from the War Plot in Malines Communal Cenetery and 1 from the Casino Garden at Lierre).
The Second World War burials number 1455, inclusive of a US airman attached to the RAF, 16 Polish and 1 French Army officer.
Gent (or Ghent) City Cemetery:
Gent (or Ghent) was occupied by French Marines and a British Division in 10/1914, but was evacuated under sustained German attacks. It remained in German hands until it was reoccupied by the Belgians on 10.11.1918.
The Germans returned to Ghent in 05/1940 during World War II and remained there until the city's liberation on 10.09.1944.
In 05/1940, the main fighting around Ghent occurred near the junction of the Ghent-Bruges and Ternenzen canals.
In 09/1944 the Northern part of the city was the most badly affected.
Ghent City Cemetery contains the graves of many nationalities, including Allied troops.
The First World War Allied graves total 86, who were prisoners of war buried here during the German occupation, two were brought in from Jabbeke Churchyard after the Armistice.
The World War II Allied graves number 111.
Laeken (or Laken) Cemetery, Brussels:
The cemetery of Laeken is the oldest of the Brussels Region.
It is an open-air museum of silent funerary art and the resting place of many personalities that shaped the young and dynamic Brussels of the 19th Century.
Its underground burial galleries are over one hectare and the only example of this kind in Northern Europe.
The Laeken Cemetery also hosts one of the original bronze casts of "The Thinker" (one of the most famous sculptures in the world by the Frenchman Auguste Rodin.
Another celebrity -La Malibran - one of the greatest opera singers of those days, found her final resting place under the protective branches of a centuries-old weeping beech.
Important politicians, entrepreneurs and benefactors also have their graves here along with many artists. The deceased members of the Royal Belgian family are buried in the Royal Crypt under the Our Lady's Church, the monumental neo-gothic church that is the focal point of a site whose grandeur has been carved into stone.
Interestingly, every year in June, around mid-day, when the Sun returns to its highest point of the year, a luminous heart forms at a corner of the interior hexagonal wall, through the round opening of the roof. The statue of a crying woman reaches out to it.
St. Symphorien Cemetery, Mons:
The Battle of Mons - By the evening of 22.08.1914, British forces had taken up defensive positions along the Mons-Conde Canal, preparing for a major German attack expected to come from the North the next day.
The opening shots of the Battle of Mons were fired the next morning on 23.08.1914, when a German attack was repulsed, when they were attempting to cross the canal over a bridge at Obourg.
By 10.00 am, the British defenses came under intense artillery fire. Despite being outnumbered, the British soldiers on the South Bank of the Canal fought tenaciously throughout the day, inflicting heavy casualties among the Germans.
Despite the gritty resistance, overwhelming waves of German troops forced the British troops back. By 10.30 am, the first German troops managed to cross the canal and some British units had been forced back. By mid-afternoon German infantry was crossing the canal in force. By nightfall, the Battle of Mons was over and the British soldiers had begun a long, hard retreat towards Paris.
Among those buried here are British and German soldiers killed in the Battle of Mons. One of them is Private John Parr of the Middlesex Regiment, who was fatally wounded during an encounter with a German patrol two days before the battle, thus becoming the first British soldier to be killed in action on the Western Front.
The cemetery remained in German hands until the end of the war. There are 229 Allied and 284 German soldiers buried here of whom 105 graves are unmarked.
Court-Saint-Etienne Cemetery:
The Goblet d'Alviella mausoleum in Court-Saint-Etienne is an outstanding monument in this cemetery.
This mausoleum, in which pillars, columns, symbols and inscriptions are highlighted with touches of gold, is one of the most fascinating funeral monuments in Belgium.
Twelve metres high, it overlooks the whole of the cemetery. The building was listed in the "Exceptional Heritage of Wallonia in 1988".
In 1886, the Goblet family was allotted an isolated plot at the very heart of the cemetery, complete with its own entrance and fence. The graveyard was designed from this location at which four perpendicular alleys meet, dividing the cemetery in four rectangular zones.
The Count Eugene Goblet d'Alveilla asked Adolphe Samyn to draw the blueprints of the mausoleum. The architect found inspiration in Hindu graves, which design often includes two floors topped with a dome. For this, he used the local blue stone, extracted from the Soignies and Ourthe quarries.
To this he added at the count's request, signs and symbols from mainstream religions, symbolising infinity and the hope of afterlife.
Technical Details:
Stamp Set issue Date: 26.10.2020
Designer: Myriam Voz
Illustrator: Guillaume Broux
Printer: Johan Enschede Security Print/ Repro: bpost Philately & Stamps Prnting
Process: Rotogravure and Steel Engraving
Stamp values: 9.80 Euros
5) City of Bruges (or Brugge), Belgium: 20 Years as UNENCO World Heritage Site: A 20 Euro Silver Proof Coin issued by the Royakl Dutch Mint under licencing of the Royal Belgian Mint, on behalf of the National Bank of Belgium: Coin issue date: 26.02.2020
6) 100 Years of Nature & Environment Protection, Luxembourg: Commemorating the Centenary Anniversary of the "Letzebuerger Natur a Vulleschutsliga a.s.b.l. (Luxembourg Nature and Bird Protection Society):A 0.80 Euro Stamp issued by Luxembourg Postes (Post): Date of stamp issue: 10.03.2020
7) Celebrating 25 Years of listing on UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Luxembourg: A Commemorative Stamp of 0.80 Euro issued by Luxembourg Postes (Post): Stamp issue date: 10.03.2020
9) "De Haar Castle", Utrecht, Netherlands: The first Coin to be released in the "Dutch Castles" Coin Series: A silver ducat Trade Coin with a history spanning over 350 years, minted by the Royal Dutch Mint: Date/Year of Delivery: 04/2020
10) First Atlases, Netherlands: Commemorating 450 Years of the first Atlas (1570-2020) & others: A Stamp Sheet of six stamps depicting the Atlases which were compiled in the Netherlands in the 16th & 17th Centuries AD: Stamp Set issued by POstNL: Date of Stamp Set issue: 23.03.2020
12) 75th Anniversary of the United Nations Organisation (UNO), The Netherlands: A Coin-card set of three denominations of 0.50 Euros, 0.20 Euros and 0.05 Euros minted by the Royal Dutch Mint to celebrate the milestone: Year of Coin-card issue: 2020
3) Hoensbroek Castle, The Netherlands: The Third Coin to be released in the "Dutch Castles Coin Series": A Silver Ducat Trade Coin with a history spanning over 350 years, minted by the Royal Dutch Mint: Year of issue: 2020
Some other interesting Posts from Finland, Norway & Nordic Countries:
15) "Franking Labels" from Greenland: Franking Labels issued by POST Greenland Filatelia since 2009 onwards: A brief analysis
16) Ancient Postal Routes - the Postal Boat Race - between Aland and Sweden", Aland, Finland: A EUROPA Postage Stamp of 2.00 Euro issued by Aland Post: Date of Stamp issue: 08.05.2020
Rajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Cemeteries have their own stories -very well researched 👍"
Thank you, Trikha sahab. While compiling this post I found lots of interesting information, which could not be placed on the blog as it would have made it very lengthy.
DeleteRajan Trikha has further commented:
Delete"I could understand that you have enough treasures to share but in instalments to make it readers friendly".
Santosh Khanna has commented:
ReplyDelete"Interesting information 👍"
Thank you, Khanna sahab.
Delete