Guest Post by Edward Moran
For a day life got the upper hand,
In that dreadful no man’s land,
When a band of brothers became a brother’s band,
Each extending friendship’s hand.
For a day they were unwilling,
To continue with the bloodshed and killing,
The day was for good cheer and singing,
And all that life’s prime should be bringing.
For a day there was no battle cry,
And the dark and foreboding sky,
Was filled with songs ascending high,
From young men in a world awry.
For a day they proclaimed to the Earth,
There can be renewal and rebirth,
There can be peace on Earth and good will,
People can refuse to fight and kill,
Hearts can glow with exhilaration,
A man is more important than a nation,
No man’s land can bloom like then,
It can really be Christmas again,
The Prince of Peace can have His way,
Like He did for a day.
Thanks Admin, John
“Introducing our Christmas ad ‘Christmas Is For Sharing’, made in partnership with the Official Royal British Legion. It’s inspired by the extraordinary story of 1914 Christmas truce.”
For those who don’t know …. the story behind the poem Admin posted.
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Starting on Christmas Eve, many German and British troops sang Christmas carols to each other across the lines, and at certain points the Allied soldiers even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing.
At the first light of dawn on Christmas Day, some 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.
Some soldiers used this short-lived ceasefire for a more somber task: the retrieval of the bodies of fellow combatants who had fallen within the no-man’s land between the lines.
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Truce of 1914 came only five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last examples of the outdated notion of chivalry between enemies in warfare. It was never repeated—future attempts at holiday ceasefires were quashed by officers’ threats of disciplinary action—but it served as heartening proof, however brief, that beneath the brutal clash of weapons, the soldiers’ essential humanity endured.
During World War I, the soldiers on the Western Front did not expect to celebrate on the battlefield, but even a world war could not destory the Christmas spirit
A day or two later both sides were killing each other again …. not necessarily because they personally hated each other …….. but, because that’s what their political and economical leaders wanted.
A more detailed and accurate portrayal … includes WWI footage and interviews
I saw the movie years ago..That kind of spontaneous Christmas spirit never happened again on the battlefield.1914 was just the beginning . Millions were killed and wounded over the next several years.