Early in the First World War, in August, or September, even October of 1914, there was a feeling on the Allied side that "the boys will be home for Christmas."
When they weren't, reality began to set in, and by the time the war was a year old, no one expected the boys to be home for Christmas, 1915.
But that first wartime Christmas gave us an enduring image of the war. Opposing troops put aside their differences, and gathered in small groups to wish one another well, to sing some carols and to exchange simple gifts.
As the war became ever more brutal, however, the divisions between the troops deepened, and such informal scenes of unity were never repeated-or so many historians tell us.
But Thomas Weber, a historian at the University of Aberdeen, in Scotland, has challenged the belief that fraternization of that first wartime Christmas was a one-time event. He has unearthed evidence suggesting those unofficial ceasefires continued to occur throughout the war, although were downplayed in official war records.
He argues the artillery, machine gun, and sniper fire ordered by Allied commanders in anticipation of new Christmas truce attempts, meant the gatherings that did occur were small, and much more localized than the events of 1914, which is why they have been largely overlooked.
"In fact, Weber writes, "soldiers never tried to stop fraternizing with their opponents during Christmas."
He acknowledges brutalization did occur, but after the battle, after the adrenaline surge had abated, "remorse tended to set in, and there are many incidents recorded where soldiers tried to help injured soldiers from the other side." And that, he argues, is why continued Christmas truces were possible.
A couple of years ago, Weber met a man whose uncle - Ronald MacKinnon, of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry - was in the trenches at Vimy at Christmas, 1916.
The official version of events that day state the Germans tried to interact with the Canadians opposite, but no one reciprocated.
But Private MacKinnon's letters home tell a different story.
"Quite a good Xmas, considering," he wrote in one. "Up to hips in mud of course. We had a truce on Xmas Day and our German friends were quite friendly. They came over to see us and we traded bully beef for cigars."
Even in the trenches at Vimy, there were incidents of goodwill to all men.
- Please send comments or suggestions to the author at [email protected]. (Copyright William D. Koroluk. All rights reserved.)
