Steely Dan Posted December 25, 2008 Share Posted December 25, 2008 December 25: General Interest 1914 : The Christmas Truce Just after midnight on Christmas morning, the majority of German troops engaged in World War I cease firing their guns and artillery and commence to sing Christmas carols. At certain points along the eastern and western fronts, the soldiers of Russia, France, and Britain even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing. At the first light of dawn, many of the German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approached the Allied lines across no-man's-land, calling out "Merry Christmas" in their enemies' native tongues. At first, the Allied soldiers feared it was a trick, but seeing the Germans unarmed they climbed out of their trenches and shook hands with the enemy soldiers. The men exchanged presents of cigarettes and plum puddings and sang carols and songs. There was even a documented case of soldiers from opposing sides playing a good-natured game of soccer. The so-called Christmas Truce of 1914 came only five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last examples of the outdated notion of chivalry between enemies in warfare. In 1915, the bloody conflict of World War I erupted in all its technological fury, and the concept of another Christmas Truce became unthinkable. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We are all just people on this planet. More alike than unalike. Too bad we have to kill each other in order to make a statement and gain control of other people. That goes for everyone on this planet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted December 25, 2008 Share Posted December 25, 2008 The so-called Christmas Truce of 1914 came only five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last examples of the outdated notion of chivalry between enemies in warfare. Maybe... But, it just goes to show you that in WWI, what they were really fighting for?... IMO, nothing except the concepts of patriotism bound and entangled in truces/pacts to help other nations. You can talk about honor, but honor is what got the world solely into the war in the first place. WWI was quite a useless and pointless endeavor that would cause major reprecussions 20 years later, first fueled by the victors and their spoils gained after the armistice and then fanned by hate into the biggest war the world would ever know. No surprise the truce happened early on druing the war... Nobody really knew what they were fighting for. Take the "good" side of that honor with the "bad." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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