Tyne Cot Cemetery is located on the site where three German bunkers once made the allied army pay a terrible price for attacking that section of the Ypres Salient. Once the Australian 3rd Division captured the bunkers on 4th October 1917, a first aid post was set up there, and a cemetery created for 343 soldiers. The ground passed back into German hands in April 1918 before being retaken again by Belgian troops on 28th September 1918. After the Armistice the cemetery was greatly enlarged.

There are 11,954 grave markers at Tyne Cot Cemetery, of which 8,369 are unidentified. At the top of the hill is the Memorial to the Missing which contains the names of 34,959 UK and New Zealand soldiers whose bodies were never found.

King George V visited Tyne Cot Cemetery during his pilgrimage to France and Belgium in May 1922. It is suggested that he recommended that the memorial cross be placed on top of the largest bunker within the cemetery grounds. The King’s Pilgrimage was captured with photographs and text and turned into a book. The book was sold to help raise funds for people who wished to travel and visit the last resting place of their loved ones. The entire book with images can be read for free here.

The King, whose tour took in most of the cemeteries in land still bearing the scars of the Great War was deeply moved by what he saw. He said “In the course of my pilgrimage I have many times asked myself whether there can be more potent advocates of peace upon earth through the years to come than this massed multitude of silent witnesses to the desolation of war”.

The cemetery is on a hill which is not reflected in the panoramic photo above. I kept the camera at a set height above the grave markers as I panned, but should have taken a double row – high and low. A lesson learned.

You can view all pictures full size by clicking on them.

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This is a view of Langemark War Cemetery in Belgium. The village of Langemark was the site of the first German gas attacks during the Great War in April 1915. Dedicated in 1932 it is one of four German Cemeteries in the Flanders region.

Behind the plinth where the poppies lie is the ‘Comrades Grave’ in which 24,917 unidentified German soldiers are buried. The bodies interred came from numerous smaller cemeteries in the area, as well as those found in fields and isolated burial areas.

Another 19,378 identified dead are buried in groups of eight, with markers across the rest of Langemark War Cemetery.

The statue of four mourning soldiers designed by Emil Krieger was added in 1956. They immediately draw the eye when entering the cemetery.

The panorama below shows a broader view of Langemark War Cemetery. It’s interesting to contrast the design and layout of the German cemeteries with the Commonwealth ones.

You can click on both photographs to view them full scale.

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These pictures show the electricity pylons that march in a dead straight line for 7.1 miles. This long line of pylons has always drawn my eye when travelling across the marsh, and I have photographed it before as shown here.

The electricity carried by the pylons is generated by Dungeness Nuclear Power Station which power over 1.5 million homes. It is due to be decommissioned in 2018.

This map shows the path that the pylons take across Romney Marsh.

View Romney Marsh Pylons in a larger map

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Despite it looking like it was taken from a boat, this picture of Camber Sands was taken from across the River Rother, where the river exits into the sea. Behind the sand dunes can be seen the wind turbines of Little Cheyne Court Wind Farm.

Camber Sands is of course enormously popular when the sun is out. It is also a popular place to shoot music videos,  album covers and films.

Videos include Feeder’s ‘Forget About Tomorrow‘ and Alex Saidac’s ‘Stay in this Moment‘. Album covers include Pink Floyd’s ‘A Momentary Lapse in Reason‘ and Buck Fizz’s ‘I Hear Talk‘.

Camber Sands was used for the films ‘Dunkirk‘ and ‘The Longest Day‘ and ‘Carry on Follow that Camel‘.

The photograph is best viewed larger, so please click it to view a zoom-able version on my Panoramio page.

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Another day out, another overcast day but this time at Herstmonceux Castle. The daffodils are defying the miserable weather though and add some much needed colour to the drabness of sky. This picture looked a bit flat originally, so I thought the colour of the daffodils should be emphasised.

The name Herstmonceux comes from the name of the original place, a Manor named ‘Herst’ which was given to a man called Wilbert by William the Conqueror. Some time after a lady of that family married another Norman nobleman named Ingleram de Monceux. The manor became known as ‘the Herst of Monceux’. You can read more about the history of Herstmonceux Castle here.

The photos above and below are the standard views of the castle that you can find by searching Google Images. You can see here how grey the day was. To view these photos full size, click on them.

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On this day the clouds over the channel were worthy of a photograph, but one photograph wasn’t enough to convey the scene. This West Hill Panorama is the result.

If you click on the photo it will take you to the full size image on Panoramio, and you can zoom and navigate through the picture.

For some reason an ice cream van is on the East Hill (on the far right of the picture). The driver was being very optimistic – it was freezing cold. I wonder if he made any sales.

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This day was cold and overcast like most days have been in 2013. On this day at least there was some contrast in the clouds. This groyne at Rock-a-Nore would have the other arm of the harbour, had it ever been completed. It now helps to maintain the shingle beach from which the fishing fleet launches from.

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I take my camera everywhere I go, and I’m always looking for opportunities to get a good photo or two. Sometimes my search distracts me from the reason I’m at a particular place – to spend time with my wife and daughter. I tend to wander off away from the beaten track to check angles and perspectives. From a distance they see me clambering on fences, kneeling down, getting up, lying down and so on. Then I come back and my search starts again.

They are remarkably patient. Most of the time.

Their patience was tested while I lined them up for this shot. They were walking along the path at Rye Harbour, I was on the beach below the path and noticed the reflection in a puddle as people walked by.

I think it turned out ok.

As always you can view the photo full size by clicking on it.

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I’ve walked past the Hastings underpass mosaics hundreds of times, but never took the time to really look at them. I think the reason I’ve never stopped before is that you’re always likely to get tapped up by whichever beggar is dwelling in the underpass.

They are very good pieces of work though. Each one tells the story of the part of town being entered. I’m not sure who the artist was, I can’t find any information on the internet nor any indications on the mosaics themselves. Does any one know?

These pictures are best viewed larger, so click on them to see the full size images on my Flickr page.

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