Belgian Military Cemetery Steenkerke

The Belgian Military Cemetery of Steenkerke is a First World War burial ground located just behind the parish church of the small village of Steenkerke, south of the town of Veurne (historically known as Furnes) in West Flanders, along the road connecting Veurne to Ypres.

How did the cemetery come to be?

Burials at this site began as early as October 1914. Soldiers who died at the divisional field hospital set up in Steenkerke were laid to rest here, together with men who had been mortally wounded on the nearby Yser front and brought back for burial. Over the following years of the war — 1915, 1916, 1917 and 1918 — and even into 1919, the cemetery kept expanding as the fighting in the region continued to claim lives. It was only in the mid-1920s that the site received its present, orderly layout, with official standardized stone markers placed over the Belgian graves as part of the post-war commemoration effort.

Who is buried here?

The cemetery covers an area of 54 ares. It holds the graves of 534 Belgian soldiers, of whom 26 remain unidentified. Alongside the Belgian plots, the cemetery also contains 30 Commonwealth war graves, most belonging to gunners of the Royal Garrison Artillery. These graves are arranged in rows labelled A, B and C, on the right-hand side of the cemetery's central area.

Why does Steenkerke matter historically?

The cemetery is closely tied to one of the most symbolic figures of the Flemish Movement during the First World War: Corporal Joe English. He died during the night of 31 August into 1 September 1918 at the hospital in Vinkem, from complications of appendicitis, and on 3 September 1918 he was solemnly buried at Steenkerke. It was at his graveside, in 1920, that the very first "Yser Pilgrimage" (Ijzerbedevaart) took place — a commemorative gathering that would go on to become an annual tradition central to Flemish remembrance and identity. In August 1932, English's remains were exhumed and transferred to the crypt of the Yser Tower (IJzertoren) in nearby Diksmuide, where they rest today — but it was Steenkerke that served as his original resting place and the birthplace of the pilgrimage tradition.

What should visitors know before going?

The cemetery is open to visitors every day, from sunrise to sunset, and admission is free. Like many of the war cemeteries scattered along the former Yser front in West Flanders, it is a quiet, contemplative place. Rows of uniform stone markers set among carefully tended lawns give the site a sober, reflective atmosphere, offering visitors a tangible sense of the human cost the First World War inflicted on this part of Belgium.

Frequently asked questions

How many people are buried at Steenkerke Belgian Military Cemetery? The cemetery holds 534 Belgian war graves (26 of them unidentified) as well as 30 Commonwealth graves, mostly of Royal Garrison Artillery soldiers.

Who was Joe English? He was a corporal and artist who became one of the key figures of the wartime Flemish Movement. He died in 1918 and was first buried at Steenkerke, before his remains were later moved to the Yser Tower crypt in Diksmuide.

Is there an entrance fee? No, the cemetery is freely accessible to the public every day, from sunrise to sunset.

Where exactly is the cemetery located? Behind the church in Steenkerke, a village south of Veurne, on the road leading towards Ypres.