Nation's bloodiest battle remembered

The crosses represent the 5000 New Zealanders killed in Flanders 92 years ago. Photo / Martin Sykes

The forest of 5000 white crosses dotted with red poppies is a striking tribute to New Zealand's bloodiest battle.

An international exhibition called Passchendaele: The Belgians Have Not Forgotten, opens tomorrow at Fort Takapuna in Devonport.

It is the final New Zealand showing of the exhibition which includes war artefacts, sculptures, photographs and stories from the battlefields.

Iain McKenzie, former honorary consul for Belgium and organiser of the exhibition, said the display of crosses aimed to emphasise the huge loss of New Zealand soldiers at Passchendaele, in Flanders, 92 years ago.

"We talk about World War I where 18,000 lives were lost, with about two and a half thousand at Gallipoli, but somehow we have never got beyond Gallipoli.

"Flanders has not really been talked about, and it has passed out of the national consciousness in some way."

Mr MacKenzie said the exhibition had been financed by the Zonnebecke council in Belgium, a country which had never forgotten New Zealand's wartime efforts.

He applauded contributions from the community who had shared their stories and helped with the set up.

The Abilities Group, an organisation offering employment opportunities for those with disabilities, spent more than 1000 hours making the crosses from donated materials. Members of the Devonport community attended a ceremony on Wednesday night to bless the area where the crosses now stand.

The grassy patch was once the parade ground where the pioneer Maori battalion and the Auckland regiment paraded before leaving to fight overseas.

The main exhibition is inside the fort, which will open daily from 10 to four until November 15.

One room has been set aside to allow visitors to record memories of family members involved in World War I.

A memorial service will be held at the fort on October 12 at 7pm to commemorate the 92nd anniversary of the battle of Passchendaele.