Ancient skeletons could be Cornish
SOME of the skeletons found in a mass grave in the Dutch city of Vianen could have originated from Cornwall, archaeologists say.
A total of 82 skeletons were found and are believed to be mainly British soldiers who died of illness in an 18th century field hospital, the BBC reports.
The remains were found outside the city’s old walls in November 2020 and then researched by forensic anthropologist April Pijpelink. All but four were men and many originated in southern England.
April told the BBC: “It’s most likely these young men came to fight against the French. At first we thought these men died of injuries in battle, but during my research it became clear that around 85% of them suffered from one or more infections, while basically all their trauma wounds had healed.”
As it was a mass grave and they all died under the same circumstances, archaeologists said a sample of six skeletons was sufficient enough for the research. Isotope analysis of their bones then found that one came from southern England, possibly Cornwall, and another from southern Cornwall.
A third is thought to come from an urban English environment, while two more may have been from the Netherlands but of possible English descent. Another is said to be from Germany.
During the 18th century, there were two wars in the area, but only the Flanders Campaign of 1793-95 against France involved British soldiers. German soldiers from Hessen and Hanover worked closely with the British during the campaign.
This was part of the First Coalition war, between post-revolutionary
France and several other European powers including Britain, Russia, Prussia, Spain, the Netherlands and Austria.
From late 1794-95, British soldiers would have been treated at a field hospital at Batestein Castle in Vianen, a short distance from the mass grave. Researchers believe that the poor and cramped conditions of army life led to reduced resistance to bacterial infection.
The average age of the adult victims was about 26, although some of those who died were just teenagers. Around 60% showed traces of one or more bacterial infections, all caused by pneumococcal bacteria.
Archaeologist Hans Veenstra believes the discovery has helped fill in a gap in our knowledge of the time. He told the BBC: “If you read history books, it’s always about the people in power – mostly about armies and generals, kings and queens, but never about the ordinary man who had to do all the dirty work.”
“That’s what makes this interesting. They lived in very poor conditions, they all had a poor upbringing with a lot of malnutrition and hard work. They had already damaged their backs by doing hard labour.”