Halle Communal Cemetery

Halle Communal Cemetery is a small but historically significant war cemetery located in the town of Halle, roughly 16 kilometres south-south-east of Brussels, on the old road towards Mons and Tournai. The site forms part of the network of cemeteries cared for by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) and serves as a place of remembrance for soldiers who died during both World Wars.

Why are there Commonwealth graves here?

During the First World War, the cemetery was used by German forces to bury their dead. The situation changed after the Armistice in November 1918, when the site came into use by the 1st Australian Casualty Clearing Station — a medical unit responsible for transporting and treating wounded soldiers being withdrawn from the front line. It was during this period that Commonwealth burials began to appear at the cemetery.

How many graves are there, and how is the cemetery laid out?

The cemetery contains a total of 105 Commonwealth burials from the First World War. These graves are arranged in two rows along the western side of the cemetery. Notably, nineteen of the graves in Row B were regrouped here from a German plot that originally stood at the northern end of the cemetery, as part of the post-war reorganisation and consolidation of burial sites carried out by the CWGC. In addition, two graves are located in isolated positions elsewhere within the cemetery grounds, separate from the main rows.

Beyond the First World War burials, the cemetery also holds two graves from the Second World War, dated to May 1940 — the period of the German invasion of Belgium and the subsequent Belgian-French campaign. These two graves lie close to the older 1914–1918 plot, forming together a combined site of remembrance spanning both conflicts.

What is the significance of the site today?

Although modest in scale compared to the largest war cemeteries of Flanders or northern France, Halle Communal Cemetery remains an important piece of local wartime history for the Flemish Brabant region. The site is maintained on a regular basis by the CWGC, the organisation responsible for the upkeep of Commonwealth war graves worldwide, including the condition of headstones, cemetery grounds, and casualty records.

For visitors, the cemetery offers an opportunity to reflect on the fate of soldiers from far-flung parts of the world — including Australians — who, through the course of the fighting and the work of medical services, ended up in this part of Belgium and were laid to rest here. Though rarely visited by mass tourism, the site remains a meaningful stop along the First World War remembrance trail in Belgium, alongside the far larger and better-known cemeteries of the Ypres and Mons regions.

Frequently asked questions

Is the cemetery open to visitors? Yes. As a CWGC-maintained site, the cemetery is open to visitors year-round, in line with most CWGC cemeteries across Belgium and France.

Who were the soldiers buried here? Most were Commonwealth servicemen, including Australians connected with the 1st Australian Casualty Clearing Station, which operated at the site in the period immediately following the end of the First World War.

Are there graves from other periods? Yes. Alongside the First World War plots, the cemetery also contains two graves of soldiers who died in May 1940, during the Second World War campaign in Belgium.