Christmas 1914 In no man's land

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The truce began on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1914, when German troops began decorating the area around their trenches in the region of Ypres, Belgium, for Christmas. They began by placing candles on trees, then continued the celebration by singing Christmas carols, most notably Stille Nacht (Silent Night). The British troops in the trenches across from them responded by singing English carols. The two sides continued by shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon thereafter, there were calls for visits across the "No Man's Land" where small gifts were exchanged — whisky, jam, cigars, chocolate, and the like. The artillery in the region fell silent that night. The truce also allowed a breathing spell where recently-fallen soldiers could be brought back behind their lines by burial parties. Proper burials took place as soldiers from both sides mourned the dead together and paid their respects. At one funeral in No Man's Land, soldiers from both sides gathered and read a passage from the 23rd Psalm: The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the path of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. The truce spread to other areas of the lines, and there are many stories of football matches between the opposing forces. The film Joyeux Noël suggests that letters sent home from both British and German soldiers related that the score was 3-2 in favour of the Germans. source: wikipedia I made this video after hearing Mike Harding's song played on the radio in December 2007. The whole video was done in a few hours and uploaded the same night. Not so much a rush job - I just needed to get it done because I felt increasingly upset at looking into the faces of the lads from both sides, many who will have died soon thereafter. Here is a link to Mike Harding's website where you can find details of the CD Plutonium Alley, the album from which this song is taken. A better quality remastered version is available: http://www.mikeharding.co.uk/

Category: News
Uploaded: December 22nd, 2007 @ 10:06 pm
Author: alanstarkie2001

Length: 05:14
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Tags: christmas christmas truce joyeux noel christmas 1914 first world war great war ww1 ww2 truce trenches trench trench warfare mike harding silent night stille nacht ypyres belgium pipes of peace frélinghien football panzergrenadier fusiliers mustard gas eastern front armistice world at war all quiet on the western front peace no man's land no mans land wwii merry xmas merry christmas germany

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