SHELL CASING OF THE WEEK: RELIC FROM THE BATTLE OF LYS

In this section I would normally bring you a decorated shell casing, but this week I am going to bring you one that is undecorated however none the less interesting. As you will see from the description, it is a British 8Pdr dug up in La Gorgue, Northern France by a farmer whom I had the pleasure to meet.

This shell casing will be listed on eBay from this Thursday for 10 days in an auction starting at £9.99 (follow the link below)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/330766595728?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_11741wt_1270

WWI RELIC OF BATTLE OF THE LYS 1918 DUG UP BY LOCAL FARMER ON HIS LAND!

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IN THIS AUCTION WE HAVE ON OFFER A FANTASTIC RELIC OF THE BATTLE OF LYS 1918 DUG UP BY A LOCAL FARMER ON HIS LAND IN LA GORGUE THIS IS A BRITISH 18 PDR SHELL CASING FROM THE 1918 BATTLE OF LYS AND WAS UNEARTHED BY A LOCAL FARMER IN LA GORGUE WHILE WORKING HIS LAND THE BACK STAMPS REVEAL THAT IT WAS ORIGINALLY MADE BY THE ELSWICK ORDNANCE COMPANY BEFORE BEING RELOADED AT THE ROYAL ARSENAL AT WOOLWICH IT IS DATED 1918 WHICH WOULD MAKE IT CONTEMPORARY TO THE BATTLE OF LYS IN THE AREA THIS IS A GENUINE ARTEFACT FROM THE FAMOUS ACTIONS IN WWI AND YOUR CHANCE TO OWN IT I HAVE TWO FURTHER RELICS FROM THE SAME FARMER ONE FROM 1915 AND THE OTHER A RELIC FROM THE D DAY LANDINGS IN WWII!   Battle of the Lys (1918) The Battle of the Lys (also known as the Lys Offensive, the Fourth Battle of Ypres, the Third Battle of Flanders (French: 3ème Bataille des Flandres) and as the Batalha de La Lys in Portugal) was part of the 1918 German offensive in Flanders during World War I (also known as the Spring Offensive). It was originally planned by General Ludendorff as Operation George but reduced to become OperationGeorgette, with the objective of capturing Ypres and forcing the British forces back to the Channel ports (and thereby out of the war). The battle began on 7 April 1918, and lasted until 29 April. In planning, execution and effects, Georgette was similar to (although smaller than) Operation Michael, earlier in the Spring Offensive. Background French forces in trenches in the early stages of the war. The German attack zone was in Flanders, from about 10 km east of Ypres in Belgium to 10 km east ofBéthune in France, about 40 km south. The front line ran from NNE to SSW. The Lys River, running from southwest to northeast, crossed the front near Armentières in the middle of this zone. The German attacking forces were the Sixth Army in the south (under von Quast), and the Fourth Army in the north (under Sixt von Armin). Both armies included substantial numbers of the new Stosstruppen, trained to lead attacks in the new Hutier tactics. The front was held by the Belgian Army in the far north, by the British Second Army (under Plumer) in the north and center, and by the British First Army (under Horne) in the south. The First Army in particular was a relatively weak force; it included several worn-out formations that had been posted to a "quiet sector". This included two Portuguese divisions, which were undermanned, lacked almost half of their officers, had very low morale and were set to be replaced the day of the German attack. The German plan was to smash through First Army, push Second Army aside to the north, and drive west to the English Channel, cutting off British forces in France from their supply line which ran through the Channel ports of Calais, Dunkirk and Boulogne. Beyond the Hindenburg Line Through October, the German armies retreated through the territory gained in 1914. The Allies pressed the Germans back toward the lateral railway line from Metz to Bruges (shown in the map at the head of this article), which had supplied their entire front in Northern France and Belgium for much of the war. As the Allied armiesreached this line, the Germans were forced to abandon increasingly large amounts of heavy equipment and supplies, further reducing their morale and capacity to resist.[16] Casualties remained heavy in all of the Allied fighting forces, as well as in the retreating German Army. Rearguard actions were fought during the Pursuit to the Selle (9 October), Battle of Courtrai (14 October), Battle of Mont-D’Origny (French: Bataille de Mont-D'Origny) (15 October), Battle of the Selle (17 October), Battle of Lys and Escaut (French: Bataille de La Lys et De L'Escaut) (20 October) (including the subsidiary Battle of the Lys and Battle of the Escaut), Battle of the Serre (French: Bataille de la Serre) (20 October), Battle of Valenciennes (1 November) and the Battle of the Sambre(including the Second Battle of Guise (French: 2ème Bataille de Guise) (4 November) and the Battle of Thiérache (French: Bataille de Thiérache) (4 November), with fighting continuing until the last minutes before the Armistice took effect at 11:00 on 11 November 1918. One of the last soldiers to die was Canadian PrivateGeorge Lawrence Price, two minutes before the armistice took effect.[17] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Lys_(1918) RELIC OF THE D DAY LANDINGS TO BE SOLD AT A FUTURE AUCTION click picture to enlarge RELIC OF THE D DAY LANDINGS TO BE SOLD AT A FUTURE AUCTION click picture to enlarge RELIC OF THE D DAY LANDINGS TO BE SOLD AT A FUTURE AUCTION click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge click picture to enlarge

Later in the week I will do an article on a Trench Art piece for those that are disappointed not to have one for 'Shell Case of the Week'

Regards,

Eamonn