INTRODUCTION

In April 2002 a group of people, mainly from Marple, had visited France. They went there to pay their respects to the men from Marple who fought and died in the Battle of the Somme during the First, Great War. The trip had been organised by Peter Clarke and Andy Cook, the authors of that very well respected work, "Remembered - Marple Men who fell in The Great War". Over a period of four days we visited many of the sites fought over by our forebears and stood at the graves of several who paid the ultimate price.

The 'Marple Pals' listen attentively to Peter & Andy in 2002

To say that we enjoyed the experience might seem strange but it was certainly voted a roaring success. Before we had returned home there were demands for a similar expedition this year and so, as soon as they returned, Pete and Andy were planning a second trip. This time it was to be further north, to Belgium. The Somme holds a special place in the hearts of the British people. It was there that so many of our relatives were killed in a battle that still defies understanding. But there was another place where the manhood of the Empire fought and died in the vast numbers that seem to epitomise the Great War. That place was known then as The Ypres Salient. It was to here that the next trip was to go and so, in April 2003, almost exactly twelve months after the first journey, we started out again.