THE GREAT WAR IN YPRES

IMAGES OF FLANDERS

By Jacky Platteeuw

 Tempus Publishers 2005 - ISBN 90 76684 52 9 - 128 pp -  £12.99

While there are many books about Ypres and the Battles of Ypres, this new book by local historian Jacky Platteeuw (a former member of the Diggers archaeology group) presents many previously unseen and rare images of the city. The book begins with views of Ypres before the Great War, showing many of the magnificent buildings that existed, and continues to show how the hand of war wrought havoc. The author then moves to the post-war period with the re-building of the shattered Ypres, the establishment of cemeteries and memorials, and the growing businesses associated with battlefield visiting in the 1920s and 30s.

The selection of photographs is excellent, and they are all well captioned and explained. The reproduction of the images is first class; overall a superb and important publication that fills a gap in our knowledge of what Ypres looked like in the first half of the twentieth century and how it coped with the tragic years of the Great War. Highly recommended.

Available from:

Tempus Publishers

Web: http://www.tempus-publishing.com/ 

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