On 19th October 1914, one of the most important early battles of the First World War began around the Belgian town of Ypres. After weeks of manoeuvring in what became known as the Race to the Sea, German and Allied forces clashed in Flanders as both sides sought to secure the northern flank and the strategically vital Channel ports. The German objective was to break through the Allied lines, capture or threaten ports such as Calais, Dunkirk and Boulogne, and isolate the British Expeditionary Force. British, French and Belgian troops fought desperately to prevent that advance. To the north, in the concurrent Battle of the Yser, Belgian forces under King Albert, supported by the French, held the line; when the situation grew critical, the Belgians opened the sluices and flooded the lowlands, creating a water barrier that halted the German push toward the coast. The fighting around Ypres itself continued until 22nd November 1914. It unfolded in a series of phases, including the Battle of Langemarck, where large numbers of young, hastily trained German volunteers suffered heavy losses; later remembered in Germany as the Kindermord, or Massacre of the Innocents. Critical moments followed at Gheluvelt on 31st October, where a German breakthrough was reversed by a determined British counter-attack involving the Worcestershire Regiment, and at Nonne Bosschen on 11th November during the final major German assault. Although the Allied line held and German attempts to break through towards the ports were thwarted, the cost was devastating. The original British Expeditionary Force suffered enormous losses; around 58,000 casualties in the Flanders fighting, effectively destroying the pre-war professional army, while French, Belgian and German casualties were also severe. The battle created the Ypres Salient, the pronounced Allied bulge east of the town that would shape years of subsequent fighting, and helped establish the continuous entrenched Western Front that ran from the Swiss border to the North Sea. Today, Ypres remains one of the most powerful places of remembrance associated with the First World War. The Menin Gate, the nightly Last Post ceremony, the rebuilt Cloth Hall and the many cemeteries of the salient stand as enduring reminders of those who fought, those who died, and the families whose lives were changed forever. #LestWeForget