ARQUES-LA-BATAILLE BRITISH CEMETERY
Seine-Maritime
France
GPS Coordinates: Latitude: 49.88846, Longitude: 1.14143
Location Information
Arques-la-Bataille (it owes the latter part of its name to the victory of Henri IV of France over the Duc de Mayenne in 1589) is a small town 6 Kms south-east of Dieppe on the Dieppe-Neufchatel-en-Bray Road.
Arques-la-Bataille British Cemetery is in the Archelles district of the town. It can be reached from the main square by initially taking the D56 heading towards St. Nicolas-d-Aliermont. At the junction with the D1 (Martin-Eglise to St. Aubin-le-Cauf road), take the third exist, a farm track, which should be signposted to the cemetery.
Historical Information
The South African Native Labour Corps came to France early in 1917 and No.1 General Labour Hospital was established at its camp at Arques-la-Bataille. Most of the burials in the cemetery are of men of the Corps, many of whom died at the hospital. The cemetery also contains a memorial to all men of the Corps who died in France. This is in the middle of the cemetery and is a Great War Stone of a grey colour, on the face of which is a concave bronze medallion with the head of a springbok in high relief; and inscribed on the stone, in English, Sesuto and Isixosa, are the words:
"To the memory of those Natives of the South African Labour Corps who crossed the seas in response to the call of their great Chief, King George V, and laid down their lives in France, for the British Empire, during the Great War 1914-1918, this Memorial is erected by their comrades."
In addition, 116 graves were added in 1953 from Division 5 of Ste. Marie Cemetery, Le Havre.
There are now 377 burials of the First World War in the cemetery.
Total Burials: 377.
Identified Casualties: South Africa 270, United Kingdom 92, India 15. Total 377.
The cemetery was designed by J.R. Truelove. The memorial was designed by Arthur J.S. Hutton.
