Unknown First World War Commonwealth soldiers buried in two services in France and Belgium

The bearer party at Poelcapelle (Photo: Eric Compernolle BM)

Four unknown First World War Commonwealth soldiers have been buried in two services during July 2026 in Belgium and France.

Both services were conducted by The Reverend Mark Nightingale and involved 9 Royal Logistics Corps, with a bugler from the Royal Yorkshire Regiment.

Three soldiers were buried in CWGC Poelcapelle British Cemetery, Belgium on 15 July 2026. They were recovered by Belgian archaeologists due east of Langemark in April 2024. Research on these casualties proved challenging due to the lack of artefacts recovered. While it was possible to determine that these were members of the Commonwealth forces, further research to identify any of these men proved impossible. It was decided to bury the remains of three soldiers in a single coffin, but marked with three individual, touching headstones.

The bugler from the Royal Yorkshire Regiment (Photo: Eric Compernolle BM)

The fourth unknown soldier was buried at CWGC Hermies Hill British Cemetery, France on 16 July 2026. He was recovered in early September 2025 by Isaure (Recovery Unit) during the Canal Seine Nord Europe proactive searches along the canal. The casualty was found south of the canal, just south of Hermies. Unfortunately, there were no key artefacts to permit a process of elimination other than to confirm that the casualty was a Commonwealth soldier. Among the artefacts recovered was a steel helmet, G.S. buttons, a mess tin, and an enamel mug. The number of missing from the area was too substantial and the difficult decision to bury him as an Unknown Soldier of the Great War was made. Hermies Hill British Cemetery was chosen for its proximity, and also casualties found in the same area were concentrated to this cemetery immediately following the First World War. 

The service at Hermies Hill (Photo: Michiel Vanmarcke)