The city of Ypres in Belgium—called Ypres in French and Ieper in Dutch— stands on one of the routes between Germany and France, and was therefore especially vulnerable to damage in the wars between those countries. It was a historic city with famous mediaeval buildings such as the Cloth Hall and St Martin's Cathedral (both 13th-century Gothic). The governments of the warring countries might have agreed that these, and other Belgian treasures such as Louvain University Library, were the equivalent of World Heritage Sites, and should be spared. However, as we can see in this watercolour, little was left standing. The view is of the Menin road, the road eastwards out of Ypres. The whole desolate scene consists of shell-holes, remains of trees, puddles and mud, and, in the middle ground, miserable human figures, reduced to insignificance as they pathetically try to extricate themselves from the horrific, bleak remnant of a landscape. Four RAMC ambulances, identified with red crosses on white grounds, are shown making their way along the Menin road, ferrying the soldiers who have been wounded or poisoned by chlorine gas
