Location
Neuville-St Vaast is a village 6.5 kilometres north of Arras,
a little east of the road from Bethune to Arras. La Targette
British Cemetery lies to the south-west of the village on the
north-west side of the road to the village of Maroeuil (D55).
Historical Information
La Targette British Cemetery is in the Western angle of the
cross roads at Aux-Rietz, and behind it is the big French
National Cemetery of La Targette, formed largely by concentration
from smaller burial grounds.

On the main road, a little further South, is the big German
concentration cemetery of Maison-Blanche; and a little North of
La Targette is a monument to the Czechoslovak volunteers who fell
in the capture of the hamlet by the French forces on the 9th May,
1915.
The British Cemetery formerly known as Aux-Rietz
Military Cemetery, was begun at the end of April, 1917, and used
by Field Ambulances and fighting units until September, 1918; and
sixteen graves were brought in from the immediate neighbourhood
after the Armistice.
The cemetery contains 638 First World War burials, 41 of them unidentified. There are also three Second World War burials, two of which are unidentified.
Nearly a third of the graves have an artillery connection.
In March-April 1917, the artillery of the 2nd Canadian and 5th Divisions, and certain heavy artillery units, had their headquarters in a deep cave at Aux-Rietz.
The 21st Canadian Infantry Battalion erected a wooden memorial
in the cemetery to their dead of April, 1917.
The cemetery covers an area of 2,852 square metres and is enclosed by a stone curb on
two sides, and on the other two by a low rubble wall.
The cemetery was designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield.
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