page_title: 175th Tunnelling Company
section_title: Messines 1916/17
hierarchical_section_title: 175th Tunnelling Company / Unit history / Messines 1916/17
caption_attribution_description: Spanbroekmolen Mine Crater Memorial — The Pool of Peace, also known as Lone Tree Crater. The site of the largest of the mines blown by the British on 7 June 1917 at the start of the Battle of Messines.
context_page_description: The 175th Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. The tunnelling units were occupied in offensive and defensive mining involving the placing and maintaining of mines under enemy lines, as well as other underground work such as the construction of deep dugouts for troop accommodation, the digging of subways, saps, cable trenches and underground chambers for signals and medical services.
context_section_description: 175th Tunnelling Company was extended to the Hill 60 in July 1915, when 172nd Tunnelling Company moved into its place at The Bluff. Deep mining under the German galleries beneath Hill 60 began in late August 1915 with the 175th Tunnelling Company which started a gallery 200 metres (220 yd) behind the British front line and passed 27 metres (90 ft) beneath the German positions. The British underground works consisted of an access gallery (nicknamed Berlin Tunnel) leading to two mine chambers called Hill 60 A (beneath Hill 60) and Hill 60 B (beneath The Caterpillar). The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company took over in April 1916 and completed the galleries, the Hill 60 mine being charged with 53,300 pounds (24,200 kg) of explosives in July 1916 and a branch gallery under the Caterpillar filled with a 70,000-pound (32,000 kg) charge in October. The 1st Australian Tunnelling Company took over in November 1916 and maintained the mines at Hill 60  over the winter.
  Meanwhile, the bulk of 175th Tunnelling Company had moved briefly to Spanbroekmolen in April 1916. Also in April 1916, 175th Tunnelling Company took over work on the deep mines at Kruisstraat from 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company. 175th Tunnelling Company continued to drive the galleries forward and when the main tunnel reached 320 metres (1,051 ft) it was handed over to 171st Tunnelling Company  who were also responsible for Spanbroekmolen.
  As part of the prelude to the Battle of Messines, deep mine galleries were dug by the British 171st, 175th and 250th Tunnelling companies and the 1st Canadian, 3rd Canadian and 1st Australian Tunnelling companies, while the British 183rd, 2nd Canadian and 2nd Australian Tunnelling companies built dugouts (underground shelters) in the Second Army area. The mines at Messines were detonated on 7 June 1917, creating 19 large craters.
caption: Spanbroekmolen crater in November 2009. It was  created in 1917 by one of the mines in the Battle of Messines. It is also known as "Lone Tree Crater" or "Pool of Peace".
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