The tomb of a French serviceman discovered in Indonesia
From the outset of the First World War, operations encompassed the maritime sphere and the colonial possessions of the belligerents.
Germany, which had a naval base at Tsingtao (Qingdao), threatened Allied supply ships (British, French and Russian) and international trade in the Strait of Malacca. On 28 October 1914, the cruiser Emden succeeded, moreover, in surprising and sinking a Russian cruiser and a French destroyer, the Mousquet, in Penang Bay,
killing or wounding a large number of French seamen. Among them was Lieutenant Jacques Carissan, who died on 30 October 1914 as a result of his wounds. He was buried in the European cemetery of Sabang, in an official ceremony. Regularly maintained by French marines on stopovers with their warships, the grave was gradually forgotten,
only to be rediscovered by chance. Following the 2004 tsunami, French service personnel providing assistance to the population of Sabang noticed this tomb with a French name. A French national living in Sabang, Olivier Tichit, offered to maintain it.
In 2014, the Directorate for Heritage, Remembrance and Archives (DPMA) was notified about the grave and its history by the French Embassy in Jakarta. Since then, each year it has provided the necessary funding for the upkeep of the grave, for which it is now responsible, in the westernmost point of Indonesia.
Tombe française dans le cimetière européen de Sabang
@DR
Tombe française dans le cimetière européen de Sabang
@DR