“Life on the Battlefields 94 years later”

Charlotte Descamps, who has lived her whole life in the First World War battlefields of the Ypres Salient, will talk about her experiences at Varlet Farm, how evidence of the conflict is unearthed every year, how modern technology is helping to identify human remains almost a century after the war, the ‘iron harvest’ in the Salient (over 200 tons of live ammunition is still collected very year) and the work of the bomb disposal squad, how other items like helmets, rifles, rum jars, badges, buckles and silent pickets help tell the history of the area, and the ongoing research efforts to locate tunnels, ammunition dumps and dugouts.  

Born in Poperinge, Belgium, Charlotte started the Varlet Farm Bed & Breakfast in 1998, specializing in hosting guests with an interest in the Great War. In 2004 she became a qualified battlefield guide. She is a founding member of the Passchendaele Society 1917, a charity organisation that was the driving force behind commemorations of the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele. Between March and December 2012, she will be speaking on the Ypres battlefields in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

photo by Ezequiel Scagnetti

                Date, time and venue: Wednesday 1 August at  12.15pm, Level 4 ASB House, 101 The Terrace, Wellington. Talks last about an hour.

For more information about our MCH public history talks please contact lyn.belt@mch.govt.nz