Lijssenthoek Bezoekerscentrum

About the museum

At the hamlet of Lijssenthoek near Poperinge, the largest field hospital of the Ypres Salient was established from 1915 to 1920. The farm of Remi Quaghebeur, along the Poperinge–Hazebrouck railway line, was the ideal place for the triage and evacuation of sick and wounded men; at peak periods there were tents and huts with four thousand hospital beds. Those who did not survive were buried on the spot, and in this way the cemetery grew organically. It reflects the violence of war at the front: the peak days at Lijssenthoek always refer to an event in the Ypres Salient.

Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery was designed after the war on commission from the Imperial War Graves Commission, now the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, by architect Sir Reginald Blomfield. Today 10,784 casualties of thirty nationalities are buried there.

In June 2009 a research project by the city of Poperinge began around the cemetery, funded by the Flemish Community and the city, with Talbot House, the CWGC, the In Flanders Fields Museum and the Memorial Museum Passchendaele as partners. Its findings form the content of the visitor centre next to the cemetery.

In the centre you discover the story of Remy Siding and the evacuation hospitals, a timeline, a database to look up a name, regiment or headstone, the hospitals' diaries, thirty audio fragments from letters and diaries, and a photo wall with hundreds of portraits. A walk past 1,392 posts leads to the cemetery.

Highlights

• The story of the largest evacuation hospital of the Ypres Salient
• Database to look up a name, regiment or headstone
• Thirty audio fragments from letters, diaries and registers
• Photo wall with hundreds of portraits
• Walk past 1,392 posts to the cemetery
• Free admission, open daily

Permanent exhibition

• Bezoekerscentrum Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery – The story of Remy Siding, the evacuation hospitals and the cemetery, with a database, timeline, audio fragments and photo wall.

Operated by

Stad Poperinge

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Admission is free.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The sanitary facilities and the visitor centre are accessible to people with disabilities.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Lijssenthoek Military Cemetery lies next to the visitor centre, at Boescheepseweg 37, about 4 km from Poperinge.

Amenities & dining

There are toilets and a car park.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit