In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
(cntd.)

People have just marked the centenary of the start of the Battle of Passchendaele (or the 3rd battle of Ypres) that lasted from July to November 1917. The battle was for control of the ridges south and east of the Belgian city of Ypres in West Flanders. Passchendaele lay on the last ridge east of Ypres.

In the Abingdon (Borough) Roll of Service one entry also mentions Passchendaele.

Private William John Hearne, 37a Bath Street, 2nd 2nd London Regiment, Royal Fusiliers (presumed killed Passchendaele, Oct. 26, 1917).

There is a faded poppy stuck to the middle of the road sign in Ypres Way in Abingdon. The first picture of wild flowers is from Barton Fields in Abingdon.