"…looking back on it all, I wouldn’t have missed that unique and
weird Christmas Day for anything." – Private Bruce Brairnsfather
In July of 1914 the world participated in a
war like none other; it was, as H.G. Wells put it, “the war to end war.”[1]
Initially a handful of military juggernauts dominated the fighting; but by the
end of the war over 100 countries chose sides and found ways to contribute to
their cause. It was truly a global war.
One of the first attacks of the war featured
Germany’s march on Paris. They marched through Luxemburg and Belgium and were
subsequently halted on the boarder of Belgium and France; both sides dug in and
the Western Front was born. The Western Front became a 430-mile series
of trenches that stretched from the Belgium/French coastline all the way down
to the Swiss boarder.[2] This front was
predominantly British, French, Belgian and German soldiers during the first
half of the war. The grimy battle of attrition lasted throughout the war and was
the setting for several major offensives, including one of the bloodiest battles
in history—the Battle of the Somme.
At the same time, the Western
Front was the setting for several surprising truces and friendly returns from
enemy soldiers. The most notable is the Christmas Truce of 1914, the first
Christmas of the “war to end wars.” This particular truce was not official. It
was sparked by an idea presented during the beginning of December when Pope
Benedict XV pleaded with the belligerents "that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels
sang."[3]
Though officially ignored, his plea was taken in by a number of soldiers who
held to a “live and let live” philosophy.
After several months of intense fighting,
soldiers on both sides started to wear down and even had a modus vivendi at
times. Often mornings would be greeted with silence, mundane jobs would be left
in peace, and soldiers would banter across no mans land.[4]
In some areas the trenches were only meters apart and it was easy to talk to
enemy soldiers, sometimes they would engage in shooting contests—remaining in
their trenches the entire time. This attitude coupled with Pope Benedict’s plea
for a Christmas peace seemed to be the right combination for a Christmas to
remember.
The unofficial truce really began to
manifest itself on December 24th and lasted until the end of
December 25th. Christmas Eve is a day of bigger celebration to the
Germans than the actual day of Christmas, thus they were greatly enticed to
relax their grips on their guns and spend time singing and even celebrating by
putting up trees! Several accounts mention soldiers putting up trees as a way
to celebrate, one soldier wrote, “Then the Germans started shouting across to us, 'a happy
Christmas' and commenced putting up lots of Christmas trees with hundreds of
candles on the parapets of their trenches.”[5][6] Christmas tree’s were
becoming a common sight in several parts of the Western Front. Still other
soldiers wrote that, “On Christmas Eve we were surprised to see Christmas trees
alight on the tops of the enemy’s trenches” and “They’ve got Christmas trees
all along the top of their trenches!”[7]
This was not the entire
story of the Western Front, as many positions never partook of a truce and just
kept on shooting through the holiday. “Friendly overtures and resulting fraternization in no
man's land were not universal.”[8] One soldier exclaimed, “Xmas come and gone and
nothing changed.”[9]
It was a series of unofficial truces that peppered the Western Front, nothing
universal or groundbreaking.
The celebrating continued
though the night and into Christmas day. Soldiers tentatively left their
trenches to exchange greetings, songs, smokes, tobacco and a host of other
things. One account of this mentioned, “Some of the fellows went across and met
some Germans half way and exchanged souvenirs,” but also went on to say that,
“Two of our men went too far and went into their trenches and haven't since
returned, so I suppose they are prisoners.”[10]
The Christmas Truce was
quite memorable with hundreds of stories of gift giving and games (“…two of our
platoons had a game of football.”[11]), but it was still the
middle of a war and boundaries remained. Several letters from the front mention
soldiers going as far as visiting trenches and not returning, making the truce
all the more curious. One soldier’s letter stated that, “Neither side would let
the other over the half way line,” but in another sentence he wrote, “lots of
English and Germans met between the two lines and had talks; the Germans giving
boxes of cigars to our men and we giving them hot tea.”[12]
While both sides seemed to
relish the idea of taking a small break, they still did not let down their
guard. Some even took the opportunity to grab some foolish prisoners. One
letter recounted, “In our centre the only incident was the capture of two of
the enemy who came across to our trenches uninvited ostensibly to wish us the
compliments of the season.”[13] Another declared the
Germans did not deserve a truce,
“We have issued strict orders to the
men not to on any account allow a truce, as we have heard rumours that they
will probably try to. The Germans did. They came over towards us singing. So we opened rapid fire on them,
which is the only truce they deserve.”[14]
Several captains and other superior officers
were unsettled by the truces and fraternization during the Christmas season.
One journal announced that war was not sport and had no place for such a truce.
It went on to say, “…and we are sorry to say that those who made these overtures, or took part in
them, did not clearly understand the gravity of the situation.” This was a
sentiment shared by the military and “an Army Order issued on December 29th
forbids for the future similar fraternization, and any rapprochement with the enemy
in the trenches. All acts contrary to this order will be punished in high
treason.”[15]
The Christmas Truce of 1914
was the first and last truce of its nature. Future holidays were received with
increased raids and heavy artillery fire, making the truce of 1914 all the more
unique. The beginning of the war showed a “live and let live” mindset; but as
the war progressed, that philosophy ebbed away and the casualty rate piled up. The
following years have stories of scattered truces on the Western Front, but
nothing like Christmas in 1914. While it was not the romantic fantasy that some
may say, it was a glimpse into the attitudes of soldiers during the First World
War—it was an escape from the grit and grime of war.
[1] Bertrand
Russell, Prophesy and Dissent,
1914-1916. (London: Rutledge, 1988), 10.
[2] Matt Anderson, Don’t Forget Me, Clobber. (Aspley: ANZAC Day Commemoration
Committee, 2006).
[3] Terry Philpot, “World War I's Pope
Benedict XV and the pursuit of peace,” National
Catholic Reporter, 2014. Accessed Nov 17, 2014. http://ncronline.org/news/peace-justice/world-war-pope-benedict-xv-and-pursuit-peace
[4] Peter Hart, “Christmas Truce,” Military History, January 2015, 66.
[5] Corporal Leon Harris, “January 2 1915: Wonderful Xmas.
Exonian Tells of Xmas Trees Before the Trenches,” Operation Plum Puddings, 1999. Accessed Nov 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/devon.html
[6] Operation
Plum Puddings is a website that is dedicated to finding and transcribing first
hand letters and newspaper stories about the Christmas Truce onto the internet.
[7] Private Farden & Sergeant A.
Lovell, “Germans Who Played the Game” and “The Wonderful Christmas in the
Trenches,” Operation Plum Puddings, 1999.
Accessed Nov 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/essex.html
[9] Unknown, “Eyewitness,” Operation Plub Puddings, 1999. Accessed
November 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/cumbria.html
[10] Private E. Newell, “Christmas Truce.
Mingling with the Enemy,” Operation Plum
Puddings, 1999. Accessed November 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/norfolk.html
[11] Private Farden, “Germans Who Played
the Game,” Operation Plum Puddings, 1999.
Accessed Nov 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/essex.html
[12] Unknown, “Christmas at the Front.
German Cigars for British Tea,” Operation
Plum Pudding, 1999. Accessed November 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/norfolk.html
[13] Unknown, “Too Friendly,” Operation Plum Pudding, 1999. Accessed
November 18, 2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/norfolk.html
[14] Billy Congreve, Armageddon Road, A VC’s Diary, 1914-1916. (London: William
Kimber, 1982), 96.
[15] Taegliebe Rundschau, “Germans and the
Christmas Truce,” Operation Plum Puddings, 1999. Accessed Nov 18th,
2014. http://www.christmastruce.co.uk/essex.html
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