Ypres Then and Now: The Cloth Hall

This is the Cloth Hall, which is the centre of trade here, built in the 13th century, and it's the most iconic building in Ypres, both now and, of course, during the war. This was where cloth was bought and sold and traded, and it had a very strong connection with Britain as well, because British wool was sent over here and then made into these very fine cloths which were distributed all over Europe, and it made this area of Flanders very, very wealthy. There was always a very strong connection between the British and the Flemish people who lived here, long before the First World War. And then, when the Germans invaded Belgium in 1914, the British saw that as their call to arms. This was their reason to come and join the war to defend neutral Belgium, and that brought them here to Ypres. It was a real source of pride to the British and Commonwealth nations that they defended Ypres. This was the only corner of Belgium that hadn't been occupied by the Germans, and they were determined to defend it. Which is why, even though the entire town was destroyed, the British never left. They stayed here and they defended it. And that's why so many people died in this very small corner of Belgium. This entire building was skeletonised in the four years of war. There was not much left standing by the time the war finished in 1918, and you can still see the evidence of that. You can see these craters in the masonry that was left behind, evidence of the shells that exploded in the street just here, and sprayed the entire building with shrapnel. And when you stand back, it looks pristine. It looks like a wonderful, beautiful, medieval building. But it's when you get close, and you see that damage, and you see those holes in the side, that you start to see the fury, the violence that occurred in the streets all around us. And of course, every building was just like this one. Smashed, destroyed, needing to be rebuilt. Remarkable to stand here. Directly opposite the Cloth Hall is this other magnificent structure, St Martin's Cathedral, and this was the other dominant building in Ypres at the time of the war. Like the Cloth Hall, it too was completely destroyed and had to be rebuilt. We're just behind the cathedral here, and it's funny to think that for centuries, as I was walking down these steps, I would have been entering this beautiful old chapel. But again, thanks to the First World War, today it's just an absolute ruin. You wonder for how many centuries people trod these pavers, not realising that the days of the chapel were certainly numbered. Remarkable that again, they've left these deliberately as just little reminders of the wartime history of the town. And there's no better reminder than this. When we come over here, in this area behind the chapel, it's almost like a grotesque amusement park. These are parts of the chapel that were not incorporated when they reconstructed the building. They've got these old columns scarred with shellfire, statues, headless saints. A century down the road, the town has moved on, and today it's prosperous and quite a beautiful place. But these little reminders of the war are never far away, and it's wonderful to come here and discover them. I'm Matt McLaughlin, and thanks for watching Living History TV. Don't forget to subscribe for more great history content.