The Holz Brothers died exactly 100 years ago

Someone (John?) has been there before us this week

Garry, Mary and Daile paying their respect

It was a special day for the Holz family today. They visited the graves of 2 great uncles who are buried next to each other. The third brother was badly injured. 

These are the soldiers who died exactly 100 years ago and are buried at Motor Car Corner Cemetery

ANDREWS	THOMAS	Wellington Regiment	3rd Bn.	A. 17.
BENNETT	FRED	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	B. 11.
CRAIG	DAVID GLOVER	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	B. 13.
CUNNINGHAM	PATRICK	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	B. 12.
GREEN	JACK	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	B. 15.
HAMILL	CHARLES PATRICK	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	B. 14.
HOLZ	ALLAN	Wellington Regiment	3rd Bn.	A. 15.
HOLZ	ERNEST JOHN JULIUS	Wellington Regiment	3rd Bn.	A. 16.
TAYLOR	ARTHUR JULIUS	Auckland Regiment	3rd Bn.	A. 18.

We have reason to believe they were billet in this neighbourhood

Those soldiers are from the 3Bn and have never been in combat with their regiment because the first and only time the 3th Battalions went into battle with the 4th Brigade was on 4 October 1917, the Battle of Broodseinde.

The Holz brothers were killed in Nieppe while they were at their billets in Pont de Nieppe.

 

some Kiwi soldiers were billeted around this church in Nieppe.

You can read more about the Holz brothers here: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/photo/holz-brothers or visit the temporary digital exhibition in Messines.

In Memory of Fr James McMenamin

Fr James McMenamin enlisted for service as an army chaplain in August 1914 and went overseas with the NZ Expeditionary Force.

He went ashore at Gallipoli early on the first day of the landings and during his time ministering to troops in the terrible conditions, he became greatly respected and admired by all soldiers, whatever their rank or religion. Another chaplain wrote “No place was too hot for him. He carried water, he helped the wounded to the beach, he was up night after night doing good”. His health suffered terribly and he spent some weeks recuperating in Egypt before returning to Gallipoli. When he was invalided home in October 1915, his enlistment weight of 67kg had dropped to less than 44kg.

After a period of recuperation in New Zealand, Fr McMenamin returned to England where he spent the rest on 1916 as a chaplain in New Zealand military hospitals in England.

In January 1917, Fr McMenamin returned to frontline duty in France, attached to 2nd Battalion on the Canterbury Regiment. 8 June 1917, Father McMenamin, New Zealand chaplain, had been called to theburial of a Catholic soldier near Messines. While he was reciting the final commendation at the gravesite, a shell blew up near him and killed him although his death is recorded on memorials as 9 June because this is the date his family was given.

Col H Stewart, Commanding Officer of the Canterbury Regiment wrote: “Whilst engaged in these last solemn rites of the battlefield, a shell killed the Rev JJ McMenamin, a man of the highest character, unsurpassable courage and kindly disposition who showed to perfection that shrewd judgment tempered by charity of men and things, characteristic of the best type of Roman Catholic priest.”

This very zealous chaplain, who was held in high esteem by his soldiers, was, on the wishes of this Parish Priest, brought to Nieppe where he was given solemn funeral rites.

Fr Raphaël Vandaele, Parish Priest of Nieppe, wrote: “The mayor gave permission for this priest to be buried in the parish priests’ vault. This act of goodwill was made known to and very appreciated by Archbishop O’Shea, Archbishop of Wellington (New Zealand).”

Fr McMenamin was initially buried in Messines but was later reinterred in the curé’s vault in Nieppe.

Remembrance Service in Nieppe and Messines

Father McMenamin was the only New Zealand Roman Catholic chaplain to be killed in action in either World War One or World War Two. Another died after WW1 as a result of his service.

Father McMenamin's "battlefield chalice" will be arriving with the New Zealand Defence Force contingent and will be returning to NZ with them.

The chalice was presented to him by parishioners before he left for war and was returned to the parish after his death here. The boys at a local Catholic school have made a case for the chalice to travel in from New Zealand native woods.
We are planning to put it on display at Messines.

A number of parishioners from Sacred Heart are coming across for the June 7 and June 8 services.

Father Brian Fennessy, who is coming across to represent Cardinal Dew, the Archbishop of New Zealand in Wellington, and also a Belgian and New Zealand Padre together with the Priests of Nieppe and Messines will do the service in Nieppe at 4 pm and also the Holy Mass at Messines at 7.30 pm on 8 June 2017.

Kia Maumahara Māori Pioneers -Forgotten 43

Kia Ora 

During two days, the New Zealand Pilgrimage Trust was hosting a special group New Zealanders and Cook Islanders. Sue Baker-Wilson, QSM was the first to contact us and it was a fantastic idea to estend the visit to Northern France and Belgium.

Most of the group are descendants of soldiers who fought in the Maori Pioneer Battalion. Pioneers were working with the engineers and did hard labour under very difficult conditions (bad weather, shelling, gas,...). They made trenches, plank roads, dugouts, shelters, duckboard tracks, and many more work, some have been used as foresters and 43 members of the Maori Pioneer Battalion have been in Arras to dig the tunnels prior to the Battle of Arras. Some of them have signed their work  in the tunnels of Arras. The descendants of those 43 made a group known as the “Kia Maumahara Māori Pioneers -Forgotten 43 “. They have been the guests of honour in Arras and they could descent in the tunnels made by their forebears. Three of those tunnelers are buried in Belgium because they have been killed here later in the war.

The Forgotten 43 are the only known group of Pioneer descendants to travel together for the WW1 commemorations. As such, they are also be paying their respects and acknowledging all NZ (Maori Pioneers), not just their own loved ones.

Kiro Luke Adam a soldier from Cook Island

Not only Maori people were part of the Maori Pioneer Battalion but also people from the Pacific Islands as Cook Island. This was a reason for the Queens Representative of Cook Island, His Excellency Tom Marsters and Lady Tuaine to come over and pay their respect to their forebears. Only one of the 11 Cook Islanders who died during the Great War is buried in Belgium.
But H.E. Tom Marsters would do a pilgrimage to all the graves and Memorials for his ancestors and also pay his respect to the Maori Pioneers who died on the Western Front because they were all Comrades in Arms during WWI. They were accompanied by Mrs Moeroa Hobbs and Mr. Anthony Brown.

VIP visit for Private Kiro Luke Adam

H.E.'s Gregory Andrew, Tom Marsters and Lady Tuaine

We started Monday morning in Armentieres 

Cité Bonjean

and visited different cemeteries and graves with a group of about 30 persons.

we gave all pioneers a Dolores cross

visit for Frank Wiki

Ploegsteert Memorial

Underhill farm

In the evening the group was hosted by the Last Post Association together with 2,000 Canadians who were here for the Battle of Arras and the Battle of Vimy.

H.E. Tom Marsters and Lady Tuaine were laying a wreath together with the New Zealand Ambassador to Belgium H.E. Gregory Andrews. Different Maori and Cook Island families did the same. 

waiting for the wreath laying

On Tuesday we could continue our visits and we started with Ramparts Cemetery in Ypres/Ieper where some Pioneers are buried. Amongst them 6 young Maori who have been killed by shell fire on 31 December 1917 while doing road works on the road to Zonnebeke. Then we moved to Passchendaele and visited the New Zealand sector, ‘s Graventafel, Belle Vue Spur and a small exhibition about the involvement of New Zealand during WWI in the Old Cheese Factory. Of course we visited also Tyne Cot Cemetery because there is also a Maori Pioneer Battalion soldier, Jack Hunter,  buried who was killed in the Battle of Passchendaele and originally has been buried at Schuler Galleries.

Tyne Cot Cemetery

6 Maori who died on 31/12/17

Jack Hunter on Tyne Cot

Maria and Jo mourn at the grave of a family member

We went also to Polygon Wood to visit the New Zealand graves and for the Memorial for the Missing New Zealanders but also to learn about the work of the Maori Battalion during the winter of 1917-1918. The visit to the New Zealand bunkers in the wood was also a highlight. We ended this day in Heuvelland and visited the Pool of Peace, a WWI crater from the Battle of Messines and a small cemetery near the Seule where we visited the grave of a family member of my contact person in the group of the Forgotten 43, Elanar (Maria) Tibble.

It was a huge honour and at the same time a real pleasure to be with the group and share our common history and learn a lot about other cultures. It was very moving to see that some graves were visited for the first time by a member of the family and to see how they respectful visited the other graves on the cemeteries.