THE LE TOURET MEMORIAL

HISTORY

The Le Touret Memorial commemorates 13,479 British soldiers who fell in the fighting from October 1914 until 24th September 1915, when the Loos Memorial takes over. Geographically it covers an area enclosed in the north by the river Lys and a line drawn from Estaires to Fournes, and in the south by the former wartime boundary of the First Army at Grenay. As such the following major battles and actions are represented by the commemorations on this memorial:

The Battle of La Bassée: 10th October - 2nd November 1914
The Defence of Festubert & Givenchy: November-December 1914
Cuinchy & First Givenchy: January-March 1915
Neuve Chapelle: 10th-13th March 1915
Aubers Ridge: 9th May 1915
Festubert: 15th-25th May 1915
Givenchy: June-September 1915

The memorial is located in the grounds of Le Touret Military Cemetery, Festubert. It takes the form of a loggia surrounding an open rectangular court. The court is enclosed by three solid walls and on the eastern side by a colonnade. East of the colonnade is a wall, and both are prolonged to the north and south, forming a long gallery where nearly half the names are listed. The stone for this memorial came from Nimes.

As with all memorials to the missing, the names are in regimental order, and then rank and name within each unit. The largest number of commemorations are from six regiments who played a key part in the fighting here: 

Black Watch - 620 names
Northamptonshire Regiment - 545 names
King's Liverpool Regiment - 463 names
Seafoth Highlanders - 447 names
Royal Sussex Regiment - 443 names
Highland Light Infantry - 441

The vast majority of those commemorated at Le Touret were regular soldiers or territorials, who began to arrive in this sector from late 1914 onwards. A handful of men from Kitchener's Army units are also found here, from those formations that were among the first to arrive in France in the Spring of 1915. Since the memorial was built, the remains of at least 31 soldiers have been found on the battlefields.

LOCATION

Le Touret is best reached from Armentières via the D171. Stay on this until you reach the roundabout at La Bombe, opposite the Indian Memoria. Here go stright across and continue on the D171, passing the D166 on your left for Festubert, until you arrive at the cemetery and memorial. There is a parking bay outside.

PLAN OF LE TOURET MEMORIAL

THIS SHOWS LOCATION OF PANELS

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PLAN ©CWGC

INDEX SHOWING WHERE REGIMENTS & CORPS ARE INSCRIBED ON THE PANELS

USE THIS IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE PLAN ABOVE

©Paul Reed 2001-2006