A circular tour beginning at: Rue Paul Gauguin
Coordinates: 50°31 02.18” N – 2°46 28.82” E
Suitable for:
Distance: 6km/3.7 miles
Grade: Easy
Maps: IGN Série Bleue 2405 E – Lens
General description and context: The British line here was established in October 1914. In the case of Cuinchy it evolved as a result of some intense and bitter fighting involving 15 Brigade as it attempted to advance to the east. Cuinchy remained within range of German guns during almost the entire war which made it a very unpopular sector with British troops, a view not improved by the Brickstacks sector which was described by Lieutenant Robert Graves in his book Goodbye To All That. The British front line ran 600m to the east of the roofless walls of Cuinchy church and formed a pronounced salient as it ran forward towards the Railway Triangle, which was in German hands. On 18 October 1914 Brigadier General Edward Gleichen, commanding 15 Brigade, described the triangle as: ‘The worst place, for it was heavily held by Germans, who had dug themselves in behind stockades of rails and trucks and defied even our howitzers’. The surrounding countryside was absolutely flat with the Béthune–La Bassée railway running on an embankment south of and parallel with the La Bassée Canal and its southerly towpath.