Khukri
Well-known member
May 2007: I went to the Deutscher Soldatenfriedhof Vladslo close to Diksmuide, Flanders, Belgium. (Not far from where I live). I found this tombstone. Possibly the original tombstone placed by the family shortly after the Great War. As-in Belgium/Flanders-all small-local german battlefield cemeteries-were removed in the 1950's -and brought together in the few bigger ones; as Vladslo and Langemark, this is probably one of the few original tombstones that was saved from the original Friedhof.
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It reads:
"Hier ruhen zwei Brüder: Korv Kapt Max Boland III Bat/4 Marine Brigade (Bat Kommandant)+ 28 01 1915 und Leutnant Wilhelm Boland Res Inf Regt 207 + 02 03 1915
Sie standen und Sie fielen für Ihr Vaterland"
I'm particulary interested because:
-I'm a Warrant Officer in the Belgian Army: Artillery Battalion-Nieuwpoort-Lombardsijde: the most Western point of the Western Front at the Yser River-North Sea.
I'm the Range Safety Officer on the Shooting Range at the foot of "Höhe 17"-"La Grande Dune". On top of this Höhe 17 are the ruins of a German Panzerturm and the monument for the French Lt Thuret who died...January 28th 1915...during the fierce fighting for "La Grande Dune"-"Höhe 17","The High Dune". (This monument was placed by his family after the war)
As the monument for Lt Thuret was mostly destroyed it was restored and the original text on the cross was placed on the new stone.
A view in the direction of the lighthouse and the mole: the French lines(later held by the Brittish and even Australian tunnellers-digging in sand to try to mine the High Dune and blow it skyhigh). Inbetween "MY" Small Arms Shooting Range -mostly nomansland then.
During Operation Strandfest (10 july 1917) the German Marinekorps threw the Brittish troops back over the Yser.
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I found some information on Korv Kapt Max Boland who died the same day...defending the Höhe 17...
I'm not able to find any information on his brother:
Leutnant Wilhelm Boland Res Inf Regt 207 + died March 2nd 1915, nor on the R.I.R. 207...(as this was one of the "Junge Regimenter", founded during the war).
My questions:
1.All information on the Boland family.
2.Where/how Leutnant Wilhelm Boland died.
3.What was the original spot they where burried.
4.Regimental history...RIR 207.
Hope this was not boring and I hope that you can help me in my search.
Rgds,
Francis
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
It reads:
"Hier ruhen zwei Brüder: Korv Kapt Max Boland III Bat/4 Marine Brigade (Bat Kommandant)+ 28 01 1915 und Leutnant Wilhelm Boland Res Inf Regt 207 + 02 03 1915
Sie standen und Sie fielen für Ihr Vaterland"
I'm particulary interested because:
-I'm a Warrant Officer in the Belgian Army: Artillery Battalion-Nieuwpoort-Lombardsijde: the most Western point of the Western Front at the Yser River-North Sea.
I'm the Range Safety Officer on the Shooting Range at the foot of "Höhe 17"-"La Grande Dune". On top of this Höhe 17 are the ruins of a German Panzerturm and the monument for the French Lt Thuret who died...January 28th 1915...during the fierce fighting for "La Grande Dune"-"Höhe 17","The High Dune". (This monument was placed by his family after the war)
As the monument for Lt Thuret was mostly destroyed it was restored and the original text on the cross was placed on the new stone.
A view in the direction of the lighthouse and the mole: the French lines(later held by the Brittish and even Australian tunnellers-digging in sand to try to mine the High Dune and blow it skyhigh). Inbetween "MY" Small Arms Shooting Range -mostly nomansland then.
During Operation Strandfest (10 july 1917) the German Marinekorps threw the Brittish troops back over the Yser.
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
I found some information on Korv Kapt Max Boland who died the same day...defending the Höhe 17...
I'm not able to find any information on his brother:
Leutnant Wilhelm Boland Res Inf Regt 207 + died March 2nd 1915, nor on the R.I.R. 207...(as this was one of the "Junge Regimenter", founded during the war).
My questions:
1.All information on the Boland family.
2.Where/how Leutnant Wilhelm Boland died.
3.What was the original spot they where burried.
4.Regimental history...RIR 207.
Hope this was not boring and I hope that you can help me in my search.
Rgds,
Francis