Historically, the Menin Gate of Ypres was simply a crossing point over the moat and through the ramparts of the old town fortifications, on the road to the nearby town of Menin. It had a special significance for the troops though: it was from this spot that thousands of soldiers set off for the part of the Front called the Ypres Salient – many destined never to return.

The stone walls of the Menin Gate are engraved with the names of nearly 55,000 British and Commonwealth soldiers lost on the field of battle but with no known graves; a son, a father, a brother. A further 34,957 names are inscribed on the walls of Tyne Cot Cemetery to the east of Ypres.

Since 1928, buglers from the Last Post Association have been playing the Last Post every night at 8 p.m., regardless of the number of attendants or weather conditions.

On the 11th of November, a special edition is played. With an invitation you can enter the Menin Gate; otherwise, watch from the Market Square on the big screen.

There are more than 150 Commonwealth cemeteries in the Ypres Salient. Tyne Cot Cemetery is the largest in the world, now the resting place of more than 11,900 servicemen from the First World War. It was the scene of the Third Battle of Ypres, also known as the Battle of Passchendaele.

Visit the Yorkshire Trench and Dug-Out, restored along its original route from 1917. Information panels and a ground plan give visitors a graphic insight into trench life.

Address: Bargiestraat, 8900 Ieper (in front of IVVO)

The In Flanders Fields Museum is the gateway to understanding the First World War in Flanders. The exhibition includes video projects, sound fragments and personal stories. Each visitor receives a poppy bracelet that allows them to discover four individual wartime stories.

https://www.inflandersfields.be/