Silence on the Western Front

Let's take a look at our Christmas movies. The setup is joyous, in comes the conflict that will most certainly ruin the holiday, a "miracle" occurs, Christmas in the story is the best one they ever had. Granted they are cookie-cutter movies, but they do warm the cockles of our hearts and propel us into the Christmas spirit. That stuff never happens in real-life, per se. I've had my own little Christmas "miracles" from time to time, but never on such a grand scale as in film. And, I must say the real life stuff does more for my festive spirit than any movie can provide. Take for instance, the Christmas Truce of 1914.

Fighting a war sucks. Fighting a war that overlaps with Christmas, sucks more. Not only are you fighting for your country and your life, you have family back at home. They, of course, are also worried about you. So, this makes quite a depressing time during armed conflict.

During World War I , along the Western Front, the battles were being fought viciously by both sides. Conditions were deplorable and trench warfare became a textbook example of how not to fight. Journey into No Man's Land (the space between opposing trenches) was certain death and attempting to retrieve fellow soldiers was a suicide mission. However, something very odd was about to happen.

It is Christmas time in Ypres (pronounced e-pra), Belgium. The war has been waging vigorously with no sign of the fighting to end. The pleas from Pope Benedict XV for a ceasefire during the holidays went unheard. But as soon as Christmas approached. In an informal truce had been set. Both sides lied down their arms in order to observe the holiday.

The Germans and English alike erected Christmas trees and decorated them with whatever was available. It was the Germans who would break the silence, by singing "Silent Night" in their vernacular. The English joined in by signing in English to the words.

Then, one of the most remarkable events happened. Men from both sides, started to move out of the trench. A tricky move at best considering there was still a war going on and they were of course, enemies. But there was no trickery to be found. The men met in the middle of No Man's Land and began to celebrate Christmas together!

They exchanged gifts of cigarettes, whiskey, chocolate, and jam. They converse, laughed, and cried. British and German men alike showed pictures of their loved ones and commented on each others beautiful families. There is even some accounts of mixed teams playing a few games of soccer.

This was also a time for them to gather their fallen brothers and administer funerals. Both sides wept for each other's fallen.

Then, Christmas came to past. But, instead of the sky being lit up by shells and bullets, silence was over the battlefield. These men became friends and maybe even in a sense, brothers. Despite countless orders, the men would not fight. Fighting would only resume once reinforcements had arrived to relieve the men already there. The fighting was ceased anywhere from a few days or several weeks depending on the location.

As previously stated, this was not an official truce. No general or commander wanted a truce. This was not even formally decided on from the men in the trenches. It was simply men laid down their arms to observe their holiday without any order to do so. Sadly this was 1914, the war would persist for another 4 years.

Obviously, this is also an example of fraternizing with the enemy. Some were punished while a majority were not. And while, there were other examples of these truces in 1914, afterward there were no more. They attempted in the following years, but to no avail.

In times of violence, hate, and war, these men gave a testament to the power of humanity. They found themselves to be very much alike and saw people for who they are, citizens of the world. So, if you are ever feeling down during Christmas or have to have your faith in humanity cup filled, remember these men. Even in the face of certain doom, humanity endured.

In true human form, I wish you all a Merry Christmas. And I lift my glass to toast to the hope of one day humanity will be so great, we have found a way to settle our differences without fighting.

PS- A good representation of the truce is in the video below.