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 elbowgeek
 
The needle and the damage done...
 |  | Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
< on 4/1/2007 8:35 AM >
|  | | | That's the headline, and here's the article, linked here:
http://heritage.sc...s.cfm?id=410232007
A HUGE complex of secret tunnels built by Scots soldiers during the First World War has been discovered under a field in Belgium.
Archaeologists searching for the underground headquarters of a British unit found a maze of flooded tunnels covering an area the size of three football pitches.
Using radar technology, the team discovered a once-famous complex of corridors, mess rooms and sleeping quarters known as Vampire Dugout, 40ft under a muddy field near Ypres in Flanders.
The dugout, named after the band of soldiers who came out at night to resupply the front lines, is believed to be the biggest discovery of its kind.
Historians expect to find a treasure trove of personal belongings, clothes, weapons, bedding and newspapers.
Archaeologists first estimated the bunker would measure 200 metres by 150 metres, but tunnels have been found over an area 800 metres by 600 metres, and its outer limits have not yet been located.
Originally believed to have housed 50 British troops, it is now estimated to have been home to at least 300 soldiers in an underground village.
Speaking from the site, near the village of Zonnebeke, the historian Peter Barton said:
"It's a fantastic archaeological resource, which will tell us more about life in these bunkers than ever before."
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george_me25
 
Location: Christchurch, New Zealand
Gender: Male
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 1 on 4/1/2007 8:58 AM >
| | | | Flooded?? Gutted. Guess it's to be expected over time in a muddy field. Cool nonetheless
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elbowgeek
The needle and the damage done...
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 2 on 4/1/2007 9:08 AM >
| | | | Yeah, hopefully it can be pumped out and artifacts recovered though. Be great if they would open it up to the public...
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yellow_wallpaper
Location: Victoria, Canada
If you're not dirty, you're not doing it right.
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 3 on 4/1/2007 5:21 PM >
|  | | | Cool. I hope they can clean it out. It'll be awesome to see what they might find.
Has anyone heard about/been to the ones under the Canadian lines on the Somme? It was on the history channel last week. It was filled with pick-axes, old cans, bullets, and covered with carvings of Canada leaves and names, some marked 'deseased'. I thought the carvings of the leaves was really cool because they were done really well, especially by candle light, and Canada didn't adopt it as an official symbol until '64
"...let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure." - Dumbledore |
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elbowgeek
The needle and the damage done...
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 4 on 4/1/2007 5:48 PM >
| | | | Good lord I'm out of touch - I don't get the History Channel, so I missed that one. I love that kind of thing, particularly when it comes to military stuff. I'll have to check that out, thanks for the heads up.
Cheers
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yellow_wallpaper
Location: Victoria, Canada
If you're not dirty, you're not doing it right.
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 5 on 4/1/2007 6:47 PM >
| | | | Hahaha No problem. There was a series on last week about the Canadian involvement in Ypres, Vimy Ridge, and the Somme- they found a few fragments of bodies and a mining cart. I waste far too much time watching that kind of stuff.
"...let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure." - Dumbledore |
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elbowgeek
The needle and the damage done...
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 6 on 4/1/2007 7:41 PM >
| | | | Sorry if this sounds a bit condescending or whatever, but I'm impressed that at 18 you're taking an interest in events as far back as the Great War. However the Canadian component is of much interest understandably. It's just sad that they will probably never identify who the bone fragments came from.
I must say however that my brother was reading about WWII at the tender age of 12 if I remember. In fact I think he read Mien Kampf in his teen years. Strictly out of curiosity - he doesn't subscribe to any of Mr. H's viewpoints of course.
Again, not meaning to sound condescending *grin*.
Cheers
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yellow_wallpaper
Location: Victoria, Canada
If you're not dirty, you're not doing it right.
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 7 on 4/1/2007 8:03 PM >
| | | | No worries. To be honest, I wasn't raised like a normal child. My dad was in the military and liked history, so I got my obsession with history from him. I'm especially interested in WW1, and I agree with you with the identification. I think its one of the saddest parts of what happened, especially for the bodied never recovered.
I'm pretty sure I was the only 12 year old to read a 300 page book on Egyptian mythology. I've never read Mein Kampf. I should get around to it sometime.
"...let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure." - Dumbledore |
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Sinister Crayon
  
Location: Colorado
Gender: Male
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 8 on 4/1/2007 8:40 PM >
| | | | Wow, I've been to Ypres and Flanders. I actually have a rusted WWI bayonet I found in a field there along with some of the shrapnel that farmers dig up every plowing season. Some of the tours show you trenches with stairs leading into flooded rooms, maybe some of those rooms were actually tunnels...
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DevilC
Location: Washington, District of Corruption
Gender: Male
I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their views.
| |  | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 9 on 4/1/2007 9:07 PM >
| | | | Digging up a WW1 battlefield sounds tremendously dangerous.
Science flies you to the Moon. Religion flies you into tall buildings. |
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eoghan
 
Location: dormont pa
Gender: Male
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 10 on 4/1/2007 9:50 PM >
| | | | it can be, many farm fields in belgium have metal tubes sunk into the roadsides, these are places for the farmers to put ordnance that they find, and then call for pickup.
eoghan
Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag and begin slitting throats... -H.L. Mencken
dude, if you ever shoot me with a .25, and i find out about it, i'll kick yer ass! |
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elbowgeek
The needle and the damage done...
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 11 on 4/1/2007 10:22 PM >
| | | | Posted by yellow_wallpaper
I've never read Mein Kampf. I should get around to it sometime.
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Having a relative in the military does indeed spark an interest, as happened in our family.
Reading Mien Kampf is interesting in that it provides an incredible insight into the origins of Hitler's insane obsessions. If you go to the site below you'll find an some resources which help unravel the mind of a monster and make him more human, which makes it all the more frightening of course. The link is:
http://www.adolfhitler.ws/index.php
Cheers
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elbowgeek
The needle and the damage done...
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 12 on 4/1/2007 10:25 PM >
| | | | Posted by DevilC
Digging up a WW1 battlefield sounds tremendously dangerous.
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Considering that there's still tonnes of chemical ordnance still piled up in the woods out there, it is indeed very dangerous. The archaeologists will have to be extremely careful about their digging. I'm sure there will be some remaining ammo down there.
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Shawn W.
Location: Niagara Falls, NY
Gender: Male
Optimistic Pessimist
| |  | | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 13 on 4/1/2007 10:32 PM >
| | | | Posted by elbowgeek
Having a relative in the military does indeed spark an interest, as happened in our family.
Reading Mien Kampf is interesting in that it provides an incredible insight into the origins of Hitler's insane obsessions. If you go to the site below you'll find an some resources which help unravel the mind of a monster and make him more human, which makes it all the more frightening of course. The link is:
http://www.adolfhitler.ws/index.php
Cheers |
I'm very much interested in early-to-mid-20th Century history, especially WWII, and I think that site looks like a great resource.
What is a rebel? A man who says no. - Albert Camus |
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blackhawk
This member has been banned. See the banlist for more information.
Location: Mission Control
UER newbie
| | | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 14 on 4/1/2007 11:34 PM >
| | | | Posted by elbowgeek
Considering that there's still tonnes of chemical ordnance still piled up in the woods out there, it is indeed very dangerous. The archaeologists will have to be extremely careful about their digging. I'm sure there will be some remaining ammo down there.
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I'd be much more scared of HE, if any, and stuff from WW2 is even worse if that's present. Glad I'm not a farmer there!
Very cool stuff.
Just when I thought I was out... they pulled me back in.
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Sinister Crayon
Location: Colorado
Gender: Male
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 15 on 4/2/2007 12:16 AM >
| | | | Posted by blackhawk
I'd be much more scared of HE, if any, and stuff from WW2 is even worse if that's present. Glad I'm not a farmer there!
Very cool stuff.
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Hehe, When I visited there was a bunker that had a live grenade stuck in it with the pin pulled. Apparently it was thrown and it hit the wet concrete of the bunker and never went off. Some very dangerous stuff in those fields and the gas they used was far worse than almost anything in WW2. Lot of Geneva Convention violations by the Germans too.
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blackhawk
This member has been banned. See the banlist for more information.
Location: Mission Control
UER newbie
| | | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 16 on 4/2/2007 12:30 AM >
| | | | Posted by Sinister Crayon
Hehe, When I visited there was a bunker that had a live grenade stuck in it with the pin pulled. Apparently it was thrown and it hit the wet concrete of the bunker and never went off. Some very dangerous stuff in those fields and the gas they used was far worse than almost anything in WW2. Lot of Geneva Convention violations by the Germans too.
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In WW2 the USA violated the Geneva Convention; we had mustard gas over in Italy. It got hit while on a ship in a harbor that was bombed by the German's. Few know of this today, and unfortunately no one at Bari , even the doctors (so they were not treating it effectively) knew it. Many allied troops suffered needlessly because of this skulduggery. War time fuck ups, fun times...
http://www.history.../faqs/faq104-4.htm
Just when I thought I was out... they pulled me back in.
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Soldat
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Gender: Male
The Mayor of Noobtown
| | | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 17 on 4/2/2007 4:39 AM >
| | | | Awesome. I hope it reveals some really neat artifacts if it managed to get presevered after all this time. Its amazing that stuff like this is still around and managed to survive and be forgoten. It never ceases to amaze me how much stuff from WWI and WWII was forgoten or just lost.
Im a huge fan of military history, especially WWII but since my last reenactment have recently have gotten into WWI as well. Just amazing stuff.
PS: Every side violated the Geneva convention many times over. Lets not always pretend it was just the Germans (AKA: The Baddies) 
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yellow_wallpaper
Location: Victoria, Canada
If you're not dirty, you're not doing it right.
| | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 18 on 4/2/2007 6:42 AM >
| | | | Posted by blackhawk
I'd be much more scared of HE, if any, and stuff from WW2 is even worse if that's present. Glad I'm not a farmer there!
Very cool stuff.
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I'd be afraid of the chlorine gas. Terrible stuff. Made you rot from the inside.
"...let us step into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure." - Dumbledore |
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Soldat
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Gender: Male
The Mayor of Noobtown
| | | Re: Archaeologists uncover WWI underground village
<Reply # 19 on 4/2/2007 6:47 AM >
| | | | Yeah, but from what I know mustard gas shells and such tend to rust and crack and the gas mixes with water or just loses potency over time. And a single shell cracking open would be bad but probably wont have the concentration to kill you provided you get out of there. High Explosives on the other hand like to sit there live and deadly and are not as tempremental. Imagine just sitting there one day plowing your feild then then next minute boom, your dead. That would suck.
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