Lone Tree Cemetery is a

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

(CWGC) burial ground for the dead of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

located in the Ypres Salient on the Western Front in Belgium. It is located at Spanbroekmolen, on one of the highest points of the Messines Ridge.

Foundation

Like the Spanbroekmolen cemetery nearby, Lone Tree Cemetery was established in 1917 at the start of the Battle of Messines.Michael Duffy ''The Western Front Today – Lone Tree Cemetery'
FirstWorldWar.com
22 August 2009, accessed 31 August 2009 Most of the burials are of men from the Royal Irish Rifles

36th (Ulster) Division The 36th (Ulster) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, part of Lord Kitchener's New Army, formed in September 1914. Originally called the ''Ulster Division'', it was made up of mainly members of the Ulster Volunteers, who f ...

CWGC :: Cemetery Details
accessed 31 August 2009 who died on the first day of the battle.wo1.be
, accessed 31 August 2009 Most graves are of soldiers who went "over the top" early in the morning of 7 June 1917. Some of the men buried here were actually killed by the explosion of the mine placed by the British

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

under Lone Tree hillWW1Cemeteries.com
, accessed 31 August 2009 at Spanbroekmolen, which was blown around 15 seconds later than planned. The Spanbroekmolen mine formed part of a series of mines under the German lines. It was charged with of

ammonal Ammonal is an explosive made up of ammonium nitrate and aluminium powder. TNT is added to create T-ammonal which improves properties such as brisance. The mixture is often referred to as Tannerite, which is a brand of ammonal. The ammonium ...

and set below ground, at the end of a gallery long. When detonated on 7 June 1917, its blast formed the "Lone Tree Crater" with a diameter of and a depth of . The crater at Lone Tree was acquired in 1929 by the ''Toc H'' foundation in

Poperinge Poperinge (; , ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of West Flanders, Flemish Region, and has a history going back to medieval times. The municipality comprises ...

, today recognised as the ''Pool of Peace'' memorial., access date 16 February 2015.Messines
access date 16 February 2015. The cemetery was designed by J. R. Truelove. The

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...

grounds were assigned to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in perpetuity by King

Albert I of Belgium Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934. He is popularly referred to as the Knight King (, ) or Soldier King (, ) in Belgium in reference to his role during World War I ...

in recognition of the sacrifices made by the

British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...

in the defence and liberation of

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

during the war.First World War
accessed 19 August 2006

References

External links

*
Lone Tree Military Cemetery
at Find a Grave {{CWGC cemeteries in Heuvelland municipality Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Belgium Heuvelland Cemeteries and memorials in West Flanders World War I cemeteries in Belgium Funerary and memory sites of the First World War (Western Front)