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Brian Grafton
Victoria
BC Canada
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Posts: 4720
Joined: 2004
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The 1914 Christmas peace
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Does anyone have a good reference – or even just a good comment – about the various tales of the Christmas break in hostilities?
Seems to me something happened that was terribly unmilitary, but various sources suggest everything from single, rather brief cease-fires to (largely German-initiated) instances of camaradarie on both eastern and western fronts. And that’s without throwing in the angel of Mons.
As interesting to me would be the various explanations given for ending the friendliness, which seems to range from nasty rear-echelon officers to the very brutality of the war.
Cheers, and Happy Holidays.
Brian G
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"We have met the enemy, and he is us." Walt Kelly.
"The Best Things in Life Aren't Things" Bumper sticker.
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George
Centre Hastings
ON Canada
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Posts: 13378
Joined: 2009
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The 1914 Christmas peace
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Merry Christmas, Brian
There is a brief analysis of the event on the Imperial War Museum web site. Click on the link and then scroll to the brief video.
[Read More]
My feeling is that the 1914 soldiers had not yet had sufficient numbers of experiences against the enemy to have formed a lasting hatred of them. One year later the feelings of hatred would be there thus eliminating the naiveté.
Tim Cook of the Canadian War Museum noted that the Canadians were not in the line when the Christmas truces of 1914 took place. But they were at Christmas of 1915 and he writes of one incident in which the Germans yelled across no man's land that they should have another Christmas truce. The Canadians responded immediately with rifle fire and the Germans returned fire, killing one of the Canadians. 1915 had been a particularly brutal year that included he famous gas attack at Ypres and there would be no love lost between the two sides at that point.
I suspect that it would be the same for any of the allied troops by 1915.
The video that I provided indicated that it was nearly always the Germans who, through shouts across no-man's land would attempt to initiate a temporary truce. That was true in 1914 and also in other years when the suggestion was made. I can't explain that one.
Cheers,
George
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scoucer
Berlin
Germany
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Posts: 3224
Joined: 2010
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The 1914 Christmas peace
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Quote:
The video that I provided indicated that it was nearly always the Germans who, through shouts across no-man's land would attempt to initiate a temporary truce. That was true in 1914 and also in other years when the suggestion was made. I can't explain that one.
Cheers,George
George,
Germans celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve ( 24th) - Heilig Abend not on Christmas Day (25th). May be the reason.
Trevor
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`Hey don´t the wars come easy and don´t the peace come hard`- Buffy Sainte-Marie
Some swim with the stream. Some swim against the stream. Me - I´m stuck somewhere in the woods and can´t even find the stupid stream.
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George
Centre Hastings
ON Canada
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Posts: 13378
Joined: 2009
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The 1914 Christmas peace
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Thanks Trevor. I hadn't thought about the different cultural practices.
George
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