Seaforth Cemetery, Cheddar Villa

Location

Seaforth Cemetery, Cheddar Villa, lies 5 Kms north-east of Ieper town centre on the Brugseweg (N313), connecting Ieper to Brugge. Two streets connect Ieper town centre onto the Brugseweg; Torhoutstraat leads from the market square onto the Kalfvaartstraat. At the end of Kalfvaartstraat is a large junction on which Brugseweg is the first right hand turning. The cemetery itself lies 4 km along the Brugseweg on the left hand side of the road.

Historical Information

Cheddar Villa was the name given by the Army to a farm on the west side of the road from Wieltje to St. Julien. On 25th and 26th April 1915, during the Battle of St. Julien, severe fighting took place in this area and the Commonwealth dead were buried on the spot.

The cemetery thus created was called Cheddar Villa Cemetery, but at the request of the Officer Commanding the 2nd Seaforth Highlanders its name was changed in 1922; more than 100 of those buried in the cemetery belonged to that battalion.

The cemetery contains 148 burials and commemorations of the First World War. 21 of the burials are unidentified and 19 destroyed by shell fire are represented by special memorials.

Row A, Grave 8, and Row B, Grave 1, are collective graves, and the headstones connected with them are placed against the cemetery walls.

The cemetery was designed by W H Cowlishaw.

The names of 23 officers and men of the 2nd Seaforths who fell here, but are not known to be buried in the cemetery, are recorded on a tablet.

These casualties are officially commemorated by name
on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial.

To the right of the cemetery lies Cheddar Villa. If you walk past the front of the building
you can see this bunker which now forms part of the out-buildings

Other cemeteries in the area