Map phase 1 (initial positions): On 31 July 1917, as the 3rd Battle of Ypres began, the British held a bulge in the line (known as a 'salient') around the east of Ypres. To their north were the French, then the Belgians whose northern flank rested on the Yser River. The initial British objective was a ridge of high ground that ran from Passchendaele through Broodseinde and Polygon Wood. The rectangle on the map at Polygon Wood marks the area where the Australians fought.
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