The Newfoundland Memorial , outside Courtrai ( modern spelling Kortrijk ) on the Gent road, the only Belgian caribou memorial
The Courtrai Caribou Memorial in Belgium, just outside Kortrijk (Note the modern Flemish spelling of the town's name) on the road to Gent, is the only caribou memorial in Belgium. It can be found at the western edge of the town of Harlebeke and that is the easiest way of getting there. The bronze memorial commemorates the Royal Newfoundland Regiment's crossing of the River Lys. When the Germans launched their last great gamble in April 1918 - the Kaiserschlacht - the Royal Newfoundland Regiment were involved in defensive actions throughout the Battles of the Lys. In September they were transferred to the 28th Infantry Brigade, 9th (Scottish) Division, with whom they served for the remainder of the war. The next few weeks of the war found the Division advancing over territory east of Ieper that had been won at great cost in 1917 and then lost so suddenly again earlier in the year. Following a short period of reorganisation whilst the heavy guns and other logistic support was brought up the general advance resumed on 14 October 1918 with the Battle of Courtrai. Over the next three days the British tried to get across the Lys but were repulsed - the Newfoundland Regiment suffering heavy casualties. It would not be until the small hours of 20 October that the Regiment would be able to raft across as three Divisions finally managed to force the canal and river. The Caribou is one of 5 such memorials on the Western Front which commemorate the location where the 1st Battalion of the Newfoundland Regiment was in action. The caribou is the emblem of the Newfoundland Regiment. The sculptor of the bronze caribou was an Englishman called Basil Gotto. 5 Caribou Memorials on the Western Front ■Newfoundland Memorial Park, Somme battlefield near Beaumont Hamel ■Geudecourt (1916), Somme battlefield near Bapaume ■Harelbeke (1918), near Courtrai (Kortrijk) ■Masnières (1918), near Cambrai ■Monchy-le-Preux, near Arras
Size: 3652px × 5000px
Location: Harlebeke, nr. Kortrik Belgium
Photo credit: © Niall Ferguson / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1918, belgian, belgium, canadian, caribou, courtrai, front, great, kortrik, memorial, newfoundland, remembrance, war, western, ww1
