Halve Maanroute – information board 1 Gijzenzele

In Gijzenzele, a walk of 7.8 km was mapped out along small roads.
Along the walking route there are six information boards with information about the “Battle of Gijzenzele”.

On Sunday 19 May 1940, the 6th Line Regiment of the Belgian army arrived and defended the Gijzenzele — Betsberg sector. On 21 May 1940, the 9th company prepared to recapture the bunkers occupied by the Germans, but the offensive got bogged down in a back-and-forth battle in and around the Halvemaanbosje. In the afternoon, German artillery bombarded the village en masse. German bombers carried out several dives on Gijzenzele and the Betsberg. By the evening of 22 May 1940, all Belgian resistance at the Ghent Bridgehead had been broken.

The first information board is on the Sint-Bavoplein, the starting point of the walk.
It outlines the course of the Battle of Gijzenzele, part of the Ghent Bridgehead.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar
• Photos: Marie-Christine Vinck

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