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The Great War – Christmas Truce
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When the First Workd War was declared on 4th August 1914, many thought it would be over in weeks, or ‘surely by Christmas!’ But by December, it had raged for nearly five months with no sign of an end to the fighting. Over 1,200,000 soldiers from both sides had been killed, injured or were missing – presumed dead, in a war that would drag on for four long years and see millions more die.
With so many casualties, there were calls for a truce from neutral countries including the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, but this was ignored. Pope Benedict XV who had called the Great War “the suicide of civilised Europe”, appealed for peace, warning that:
“There is no limit to the measure of ruin and of slaughter; day by day the earth is drenched with newly-shed blood, and is covered with the bodies of the wounded and of the slain. Who would imagine, as we see them thus filled with hatred of one another, that they are all of one common stock, all of the same nature, all members of the same human society?
In December the Pope again made an appeal for a temporary truce asking, “that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang.” But the warring countries refused to create an official cease-fire. For the British, General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien issued instructions to all commanders at the front.
“It is during this period that the greatest danger to the morale of troops exists. Experience of this and of every other war proves undoubtedly that troops in trenches in close proximity to the enemy slide very easily, if permitted to do so, into a ‘live and let live’ theory of life…officers and men sink into a military lethargy from which it is difficult to arouse them when the moment for great sacrifices again arises…the attitude of our troops can be readily understood and to a certain extent commands sympathy…such an attitude is however most dangerous for it discourages initiative in commanders and destroys the offensive spirit in all ranks…the Corps Commander therefore directs
Divisional Commanders to impress on subordinate commanders the absolute necessity of encouraging offensive spirit…friendly intercourse with the enemy, unofficial armistices, however tempting and amusing they may be, are absolutely prohibited.”
However, with infantry units in such close proximity to each other, (sometimes no more than 30 to 60 yards apart) it was not unusual for the two sides to engage in small-scale fraternisation. In some sectors, there was the occasional ceasefire to allow soldiers to recover wounded or dead comrades. “The dead on both sides had been lying out in the open since the fierce night fighting of a week earlier…a large crowd of officers and men, English and German, grouped around the bodies, which had already been gathered together and laid out in rows. It was a ghastly sight. The digging parties were busy on the two big common graves… In the intervals of superintending it we chatted with the Germans, most of whom were quite affable. The digging completed, the graves were filled in, and the German officers remained to pay their tribute of respect while our chaplain read a short service. It was one of the most impressive things I have ever witnessed. Friend and foe stood side-by-side, bare-headed, watching the tall, grave figure of the padre outlined against the frosty landscape as he blessed the poor broken bodies at his feet. Then with more formal salutes we turned and made our way back to our respective ruts.”
Although there was no ‘official’ truce, it was estimated that some 100,000 British and German troops were involved in these ‘unofficial cessations of fighting’ along the length of the Western Front.
“…it will surprise you to learn that the soldiers in both lines of trenches have become very ‘pally’ with each other. The trenches are only 60 yards apart at one place, and every morning about breakfast-time one of the soldiers sticks a board in the air. As soon as this board goes up all firing ceases, and men from either side draw their water and rations. All through the breakfast hour, and so long as this board is up, silence reigns supreme, but whenever the board comes down the first unlucky devil who shows even so much as a hand gets a bullet through it.”
Christmas Eve 1914, began with clear skies and a hard frost – a great improvement from the constant torrent of heavy rain they had seen in the preceding weeks and the change made life in the trenches a little more bearable.
Parcels arrived from home, packed with goodies and were distributed to the soldiers. The troops also received a plum pudding from the Daily Mail, chocolates from Cadburys and a ‘Princess Mary box’. This metal case, engraved with an outline of King George V’s daughter, contained: For the smoker – one ounce of tobacco, a packet of 20 cigarettes wrapped in yellow,
continued on page 10
Melbourn Mobile Warden Scheme
Can we help you? Can we help a relative? Can we help a neighbour? Who does the Scheme help?
The scheme is open to anyone who requests our help including those who live alone or with their families but need the extra support offered by our services. Couples too are most welcome. It is also open to those in sheltered housing, as the scheme offers different, but complementary services. Note: The scheme also offers its services for short periods to cover the temporary absence of relatives who otherwise provide this support. We offer help with:
•Friendship and support via twice weekly visits and daily phone calls • Ordering and collection of prescriptions • Basic shopping • Collection of pensions • Setting up Lifeline service • Bereavement support • Advice on benefits • Going to the Post Office to pay your bills • Advice on getting repairs done in your home • Arranging transport to the hospital or other appointments • Just coming round for a chat What will it cost?
We do have to make a small weekly charge for the warden’s services. The fee is only £5 per week (a little more for couples). Margo Wherrell (Mobile Warden) 01763 260966 Mobile: 07935 315497 Email: tigress270549@aol.com Jeannie Seers (Deputy Warden) 01763 262651 Mobile: 07808 735066 Email: jeanseers1@ntlworld.com Joy Hyde (Assistant Warden) 01763 220139 Mobile: 07952 090089. Melbourn Warden Scheme is a registered charity.
However, what has really made this local and national award-winning publication a great success are the interesting and varied contributions from residents, active local groups and helpful advice and news from many important institutions throughout the county.
As with the team who produce and deliver this award-winning publication, without these contributions there would be no magazine.
The Melbourn Magazine team would like to thank everyone for their continued support. Peter Simmonett
The Great War 1914–1918
is available for £3
ALL the proceeds raised from the sale of this book will go to The Royal British Legion and Help for Heroes
This year has seen many commemorations of the centenary of World War One up and down the country, not least the a very successful exhibition held in July 2014 at All Saints’ Church, produced by the Melbourn History Group.
The exhibition was designed to show the tragic face of the war alongside interesting stories from home. We were also fortunate that students from Melbourn Village College visited Flanders and were able to share their thoughts about the battlefields where many of the most tragic events occurred during the war.
Following the exhibition, The Great War 1914–1918 book was produced. As with the display panels in the exhibition, the book conveys a wealth of information covering all aspects of the war and its progress throughout 1914–1918. The campaigns and events are shown in time-lines, while at home, school records, council minutes and newspaper reports help to give an insight into village life. Also included is an account of the Melbourn man’s escape from the Germans and stories of men from Meldreth who fought in the war and of the German prisoners of war held there.
This book sponsored by Melbourn History Group and Melbourn Magazine, was given free to every household in the Parish and all students at Melbourn Village College and the top two years at Melbourn Primary School.
If you would like to purchase a copy, please contact Ann Dekkers on 261144 or Peter Simmonett on 220363.
Southwell Court
The apparent decision by Metropolitan Housing Association to close Southwell Court care home has come as a shock to all, but most particularly the elderly people who had settled at Southwell Court as home, and staff, all of whom have been key to making Southwell Court the special place that it is.
The County Council’s role, in funding a number of people who live there, is to help ensure that a distressing period of upheaval is handled as well as possible. It is encouraging to learn that there are a relatively good number of vacancies at homes in Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire, but that does not change the fact of forced moves for elderly and frail people, and the dispersal of a close community.
What emerged from a well-attended meeting with Metropolitan senior management, residents and their families, staff, and district and county councillors was a confirmation that Metropolitan as owner of Southwell Court has never engaged with our community to explore ways of resolving problems. While Metropolitan described an historic problem of under-occupancy, we were upset to hear that prospective clients had actually been turned away. District Councillors Jose Hales and Val Barrett and I also felt that Metropolitan had not enthusiastically explored
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possible solutions to a grant funding anomaly which has apparently held up the prospective sale of the home to another housing association better able to run it. It was agreed that Metropolitan’s ‘consultation’ period should allow this anomaly to be explored in case some solution might be found, but that the any period of uncertainty about the future be resolved as quickly as possible in order not to prolong a stressful time. It is hard to say at the time of writing what will happen next, but we are working together to do what we can for people affected by this difficult turn of events. Meanwhile we have been inspired to see families and staff supporting residents and one another, which just goes to show what a great community we have. Susan van de Ven Tel 01763 261833 susanvandeven@yahoo.co.uk
We also had an outing to the Chatteris Branch where we enjoyed lunch together. After lunch we were treated to a fascinating film show on the theme of ‘The Olden Days’. We held our own Harvest Supper on September 24th. Marion Long conducted a short Harvest Service before we all enjoyed a meal of sausage and mash.
We are busy preparing a programme of events for the New Year and would welcome any ladies who are interested in joining us in our activities.
We meet on the last Wednesday of every month at Vicarage Close Community Rooms at 2pm during the winter months.
All ladies are welcome – you do not have to be connected to the Armed Forces. The Chairman opens the meeting with the Exhortation and we close with the National Anthem Pauline Parkinson Standard Bearer. Acting Chairman Anne Neaves 01763 260110 Secretary Elizabeth Murphy 01763 220841 Standard Bearer Pauline Parkinson 01763 262617
Neil Morris
British Legion
Women’s Section Melbourn and Meldreth Branch
Sadly, in September, we lost our Chairman, Mrs Christine Lindsell who lost her battle with illness. Her funeral was held on Friday October 10th, and was attended by members of the Branch as well as her family and friends. I was able to carry the standard at the funeral.
We will always be grateful to Christine for the time she gave us as Chairman. Christine was involved with the British Legion for about 60 years, served on the County Committee and was also a member of the Naval. Society.
Our acting Chairman will be our present Vice Chairman Anne Neaves.
Our September meeting was a visit to the Barrington Group Meeting and we celebrated the Harvest with them. It was with great shock and sadness that we learned of the death of our friend and colleague Neil Morris, on 11 September.
From the moment the A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign took root in January 2013 Neil was quick to volunteer and deliver support wherever it was needed. As someone who relied solely on a bicycle for making essential local journeys – and who had had his own cycling accident in 2012 – he was passionate about the importance of creating safe cycling routes. Neil was a familiar sight on the Thursday Tesco run (and took pride in fitting all of his shopping into his panniers) and knew every inch of the A10/A505 route. His behind the scenes work made the campaign the well-run organization that it has become: designing membership cards, keeping our books in good order, filling out grant applications, writing well-informed and well-argued letters to the local papers, and at a moment’s notice, making sure the tea stand was properly staffed for the first Awareness Ride in May 2013. Small acts of kindness within his community were what marked Neil out, and this is what we will remember him for most. Neil’s friends in the A10 Corridor Cycling Campaign.
Artist impression of the Christmas Truce
monogrammed paper, and a tinder lighter. Non-smokers received a packet of acid tablets (sweets), a khaki writing case, and a lead ‘bullet’ pencil. It also contained a picture card of Princess Mary and a message from the King: ‘May God protect you and bring you safe home’. Towns, villages and many organisations back home also sent gifts of food, warm clothes and letters of thanks.
Across No Man’s Land, the Germans received presents from the German High Command, a meerschaum pipe and tobacco, or a box of cigars. Packages from home called Liebesgaben (loving gifts) included chocolates, cake, dauerwurst (sausages), gloves and leggings. Some troops were also given miniature Christmas trees (small conifers), which were put up on the parapets of the trenches and decorated with candles. The Germans continued the celebrations by singing Christmas carols.
“From the German trenches came the sound of music and singing… Climbing the parapet, I saw a sight which I shall remember to my dying day. Right along the whole of their line were hung paper lanterns and illuminations of every description, many of them in such positions as to suggest that they were hung upon
Christmas trees.”
The British responded by singing carols of their own and the two sides began shouting Christmas greetings to each other. Soon after, there were excursions across No Man’s Land, where small gifts were exchanged; cigarettes, cigars, tobacco, food, wine and souvenirs such as buttons and hats.
“They finished their carol and we thought that we ought to retaliate in some way, so we sang ‘The first Noël’, and when we finished that they all began clapping; and then they struck up another favourite of theirs, ‘O Tannenbaum’. And so it went on. First the Germans would sing one of their carols and then we would sing one of ours, until when we started up
Adeste Fidéles’. And I thought, well, this was really a most extraordinary thing – two nations both singing the same carol in the middle of a war.” “… Just before dinner I had the pleasure of shaking hands with several Germans: a party of them came halfway over to us so several of us went out to them… After exchanging autographs and them wishing us a Happy New Year we departed and came back and had our dinner… We can hardly believe that we’ve been firing at them for the last week or two – it all seems so strange” “…one of my machine gunners, who was a bit of an amateur hairdresser in civil life, cutting the unnaturally long hair of a docile Boche, who was patiently kneeling on the ground whilst the automatic clippers crept up the back of his neck.” “We shook hands, wished each other a Merry Christmas, and were soon conversing as if we had known each other for years. We were in front of their wire entanglements and surrounded by Germans… We stood inside the circle like street corner orators… Where they couldn’t talk the language they were making themselves understood by signs, and everyone seemed to be getting on nicely. Here we were laughing and chatting to men whom only a few hours before we were trying to kill!”
The strange and unofficial truce of Christmas 1914 lasted for several days and for many at the front – on both sides, that first Christmas in the trenches, clearly changed their impression of the evil enemy they were there to fight.
“All of a sudden the (British) enemy fire ceased.
Complete silence came over the battlefield…we looked over the brim of our shell hole and there between the brick heaps, came a British soldier with a Red Cross flag which he waved and he was followed by stretcher bearers who came slowly towards us and collected our wounded. We got up, still completely dumb from fear of death and helped them to bring our wounded into our trenches. One hour later a British Army doctor came out, again with a Red Cross flag and he arranged a truce for two hours to let us collect our dead ones. I never forgot this generosity of the British.”
The truce was not universal and not everyone was aware that it took place. Elsewhere on Christmas Eve, 98 British soldiers were killed mostly by sniper fire and on Christmas Day, 81 British soldiers were killed.
“Perhaps you read of the conversation on Christmas
Day between us and the Germans. It’s all lies. The sniping went on just the same; in fact, our captain was wounded, so don’t believe what you see in the papers.”
