L/Cpl
Richard Leon Verhaeghe
Information about birth
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Date of birth: 27/04/1878 |
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Place of birth: Zerkegem, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium |
General information
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Last known residence: 324 Avenue O S, Saskatoon, Canada |
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Profession: Motorman Street Railway |
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Religion: Roman Catholic |
Army information
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Country: Canada |
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Force: Canadian Expeditionary Force |
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Rank: Lance Corporal |
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Service number: 114186 |
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Enlistment date: 16/08/1915 |
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Enlistment place: Camp Hughes, Sewell, Manitoba, Canada |
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Units: — Canadian Mounted Rifles, 5th Bn. (Last known unit) |
Information about death
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Date of death: 30/10/1917 |
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Place of death: Woodland Plantation, Passchendaele, Belgium |
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Cause of death: Killed in action (K.I.A.) |
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Age: 39 |
Cemetery
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Tyne Cot Cemetery Plot: XXVIII Row: H Grave: 1 |
Distinctions and medals 3
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British War Medal Medal |
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Military Medal Medal — 06/01/1917 |
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Victory Medal Medal |
Points of interest 4
| #1 | Place of birth | ||
| #2 | Last known residence | ||
| #3 | Enlistment place | ||
| #4 | Place of death (approximate) |
My story
Richard Verhaeghe was born on 27 April 1878 in Zerkegem, West Flanders, a modest village halfway between Bruges and Ostend, where the open polders give way to the parcelled Flemish hinterland. Richard was the son of Sidonia Van Steenkiste and Adolphus Verhaeghe, a man of many trades: labourer, driver and innkeeper. Forever in search of work, Adolphus moved with his family from Bruges to Lille and eventually settled in Stene near Ostend.
In 1898 Richard’s father died. A year later, in 1899, the 21-year-old married Maria Justina Poyblant, seven years his senior. They soon had a daughter. But a quiet life in the polders was not meant to be: Richard inherited his father’s restlessness and decided, alone, to try his luck in the New World.
And “New World” is to be taken literally. Verhaeghe ended up in Saskatoon, a small town in the western province of Saskatchewan. Saskatoon — today the province’s largest city — was then still a modest settlement, founded barely thirty years earlier, but soon swelled by migrants heading west in search of work and land. The town was bursting at the seams and modernising rapidly. Richard found work as a tram driver with the Saskatoon Electric Street Car. By then he had remarried, to Augusta Kobernick, a Polish immigrant almost twenty years his junior. Together they had two children: Ferdinand and Ivonne Augusta.
In early August 1915, while the war raged in Flanders, Richard entered the recruiting office in Manitoba to enlist in the Canadian Army. After basic training he embarked for England, where he was assigned to the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles, part of the 8th Brigade of the 3rd Canadian Division. The Mounted Rifles — mounted infantry — were by then fighting exclusively dismounted in the trenches of Europe.
In early June 1916 Richard was wounded during the Battle of Mount Sorrel, near Zillebeke in the Ypres Salient. He had to recover for a time from shell splinters in the face, but a few weeks later he rejoined his unit. In the autumn, on the Somme, he received the Military Medal “for bravery in the field” for staying behind to care for wounded men in an open field under heavy rifle and machine-gun fire. He was also promoted to Lance Corporal.
In the summer of 1917, after leave, Richard returned to his battalion. At the end of October the 3rd Canadian Division was once again deployed in Flanders, where the Allied offensive — intended to break through towards the coast — had bogged down into a war of attrition over the heights east of Ypres. With winter approaching, a breakthrough seemed impossible, and although the French and Belgian allies openly doubted the continuation of the offensive by mid-October, this realisation had not yet reached the British high command. The Canadians were tasked with capturing the heights around the shattered village of Passendale. In the first two phases, on 26 and 30 October, the troops had to fight their way out of the mud by reaching higher ground. Once that slope was secured, Passendale could be taken.
The Ravebeek cut through the front; the shallow ditch had been turned into a kilometre-wide swamp by the relentless bombardments. Advancing through the marshy valley was nearly impossible. In many places only one battalion could attack due to the lack of firm ground.
The Canadians not only had to battle the swampy terrain at the foot of the ridge, but also faced a well-organised German defence. The Germans repeatedly withdrew elastically to higher positions, from which they fired on the advancing Canadians. Despite heavy losses and harsh conditions, the German position at Bellevue — the strongpoint of the German defence on a spur of the ridge west of Passendale — fell on 26 October 1917. The Canadians thus managed to establish themselves on the hillside.
On 30 October 1917 the advance was renewed. At first light the Allied artillery unleashed its deadly barrage. At ten to six the 3rd and 4th Canadian Divisions went forward again. The 3rd Division attacked with the 8th Brigade on the left and the 7th Brigade on the right. From Wallemolen and Bellevue they advanced further along the spur towards the Goudberg, north of Passendale.
The 8th Brigade attacked with the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles. Their objective was the Goudberg. The advance around the marsh of Woodland Plantation, where the overflowing Paddebeek ran through, proved extremely difficult. Knee-deep in mud, the men were unable to keep up with the artillery barrage and lost their only cover. Struggling through the mire, the troopers became easy targets. Source Farm, Vapour Farm and Vanity House at the foot of the Goudberg were captured despite heavy casualties. The survivors dug in. The 5th Mounted Rifles had begun the attack with about 600 men; by ten o’clock half were dead or wounded. German counterattacks threatened to overwhelm the battalion. The 2nd Mounted Rifles rushed to assist. Although Vanity House had to be abandoned, the positions were held with the greatest difficulty. The losses were terrible. Many never returned from the Goudberg. The battalion was relieved on 31 October, having suffered about 400 casualties in a few days.
Richard, aged 39, was killed on 30 October 1917. He was initially buried with several others at the edge of Woodland Plantation. In 1920 he received his final resting place at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot XXVIII, Row H, Grave 1, where he lies as the only Fleming, a stone’s throw from his parental home.
In 1898 Richard’s father died. A year later, in 1899, the 21-year-old married Maria Justina Poyblant, seven years his senior. They soon had a daughter. But a quiet life in the polders was not meant to be: Richard inherited his father’s restlessness and decided, alone, to try his luck in the New World.
And “New World” is to be taken literally. Verhaeghe ended up in Saskatoon, a small town in the western province of Saskatchewan. Saskatoon — today the province’s largest city — was then still a modest settlement, founded barely thirty years earlier, but soon swelled by migrants heading west in search of work and land. The town was bursting at the seams and modernising rapidly. Richard found work as a tram driver with the Saskatoon Electric Street Car. By then he had remarried, to Augusta Kobernick, a Polish immigrant almost twenty years his junior. Together they had two children: Ferdinand and Ivonne Augusta.
In early August 1915, while the war raged in Flanders, Richard entered the recruiting office in Manitoba to enlist in the Canadian Army. After basic training he embarked for England, where he was assigned to the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles, part of the 8th Brigade of the 3rd Canadian Division. The Mounted Rifles — mounted infantry — were by then fighting exclusively dismounted in the trenches of Europe.
In early June 1916 Richard was wounded during the Battle of Mount Sorrel, near Zillebeke in the Ypres Salient. He had to recover for a time from shell splinters in the face, but a few weeks later he rejoined his unit. In the autumn, on the Somme, he received the Military Medal “for bravery in the field” for staying behind to care for wounded men in an open field under heavy rifle and machine-gun fire. He was also promoted to Lance Corporal.
In the summer of 1917, after leave, Richard returned to his battalion. At the end of October the 3rd Canadian Division was once again deployed in Flanders, where the Allied offensive — intended to break through towards the coast — had bogged down into a war of attrition over the heights east of Ypres. With winter approaching, a breakthrough seemed impossible, and although the French and Belgian allies openly doubted the continuation of the offensive by mid-October, this realisation had not yet reached the British high command. The Canadians were tasked with capturing the heights around the shattered village of Passendale. In the first two phases, on 26 and 30 October, the troops had to fight their way out of the mud by reaching higher ground. Once that slope was secured, Passendale could be taken.
The Ravebeek cut through the front; the shallow ditch had been turned into a kilometre-wide swamp by the relentless bombardments. Advancing through the marshy valley was nearly impossible. In many places only one battalion could attack due to the lack of firm ground.
The Canadians not only had to battle the swampy terrain at the foot of the ridge, but also faced a well-organised German defence. The Germans repeatedly withdrew elastically to higher positions, from which they fired on the advancing Canadians. Despite heavy losses and harsh conditions, the German position at Bellevue — the strongpoint of the German defence on a spur of the ridge west of Passendale — fell on 26 October 1917. The Canadians thus managed to establish themselves on the hillside.
On 30 October 1917 the advance was renewed. At first light the Allied artillery unleashed its deadly barrage. At ten to six the 3rd and 4th Canadian Divisions went forward again. The 3rd Division attacked with the 8th Brigade on the left and the 7th Brigade on the right. From Wallemolen and Bellevue they advanced further along the spur towards the Goudberg, north of Passendale.
The 8th Brigade attacked with the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles. Their objective was the Goudberg. The advance around the marsh of Woodland Plantation, where the overflowing Paddebeek ran through, proved extremely difficult. Knee-deep in mud, the men were unable to keep up with the artillery barrage and lost their only cover. Struggling through the mire, the troopers became easy targets. Source Farm, Vapour Farm and Vanity House at the foot of the Goudberg were captured despite heavy casualties. The survivors dug in. The 5th Mounted Rifles had begun the attack with about 600 men; by ten o’clock half were dead or wounded. German counterattacks threatened to overwhelm the battalion. The 2nd Mounted Rifles rushed to assist. Although Vanity House had to be abandoned, the positions were held with the greatest difficulty. The losses were terrible. Many never returned from the Goudberg. The battalion was relieved on 31 October, having suffered about 400 casualties in a few days.
Richard, aged 39, was killed on 30 October 1917. He was initially buried with several others at the edge of Woodland Plantation. In 1920 he received his final resting place at Tyne Cot Cemetery, Plot XXVIII, Row H, Grave 1, where he lies as the only Fleming, a stone’s throw from his parental home.
Sources 6
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Census of Canada, 1916 (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG31-C-1). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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Col. Nicholson G.W.L., Canadian Expedition Force 1914-1919 - Official History of the Canadian Army in the First World War, (Ottawa, Queen's Printer, 1962), pg. 320-323. Sources used |
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Cook T., Shock Troops: Canadians fighting the Great War 1917-1918. Volume II (Toronto, Penguin Canada, 2008) 345-355. Sources used |
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McCarthy C., Passchendaele: The Day-By-Day Account (Londen, Arms & Armour, 2018) 153-154. Sources used |
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Personnel Records of the First World War (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC) RG 150, Accession 1992-93/166, Box 9931 - 47). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
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War Diaries: 5th Battalion Canadian Mounted Rifles (Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa (LAC), RG9-III-D-3, Volume number: 4949, Microfilm reel number: T-10760, File 473). https://library-archives.canada.ca/ Sources used |
More information 5
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Commonwealth War Graves Commission Database https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/464990 |
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Namenlijst (In Flanders Fields Museum) https://namenlijst.org/publicsearch/#/person/_id=b2ce45d4-59c5-4173-b83e-724b0ac653fa |
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Lives of the First World War (Imperial War Museum) https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/5161690 |
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The Canadian Virtual War Memorial https://www.veterans.gc.ca/en/remembrance/memorials/canadian-virtual-war-memorial/detail/598832 |
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A Street Near You https://astreetnearyou.org/person/464990/ |