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Christmas Truce
- 2. Christmas Truce Weihnachtfrieden,Trêve de Noël
- 3. Aims • Fraternisation • The Approach to Christmas • Christmas 1914 • Later Truces
- 4. Fraternisation • Notuncommon during periods of relative quiet • To escape flooded trenches • December 1914, the French and the Germans
- 5. The Approach toChristmas • Peace initiatives • Pope Benedict XV : "that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang."
- 6. Christmas 1914 •First documented unofficial truce 11 December 1914 • 100,000 British and German troops involved • Decorated area around trenches • Candles, Christmas trees and carols • Christmas greetings exchanged
- 7. Christmas 1914 •Gifts exchanged, artillery silent. • Killed soldiers recovered • RISK! Some soldiers were shot by opposing forces. • Lasted until New Year's Day
- 8. Later Truces •Sporadic attempts at truces • Easter Sunday 1915 – A German unit attempt to leave trenches. • November 1915 - a Saxon unit fraternised with a Liverpool battalion. • December 1915 – No more truces • Mounting of raids • Harass enemy line
- 9. Aims • Fraternisation • The Approach to Christmas • Christmas 1914 • Later Truces
- 10.
- 11. Christmas Truce •Fraternization • Peace initiatives • Around 100,000 troops involved • Gifts exchanged & bodies returned • Some soldiers didn’t take part • Later truces
Editor's Notes
- #5 Not uncommon during periods of relative quiet In 1914 soldiers exposed themselves above parapets to escape their flooded trench without killing one another December 1914 French and Germans exchanged newspapers and recovered their dead.
- #6 Peace initiatives Pope Benedict XV December 1914 begged for official truce between governments. He asked "that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang." Officially rebuffed.
- #7 First documented unofficial truce 11 December 1914 – 2 weeks before the more famous Christmas Truce. No official truce, roughly 100,000 British and German troops involved Decorated area around trenches Germans placed candles and Christmas trees, singing Christmas carols. The British responded singing carols of their own. Two sides shouted Christmas greetings to each other.
- #8 Gifts exchanged across No Man's Land. Artillery fell silent. Killed soldiers brought back and buried. RISK! Some soldiers were shot by opposing forces. In many sectors, the truce lasted through Christmas night, continued until New Year's Day in others
- #9 Months following, sporadic attempts at truces Easter Sunday 1915 - German unit attempt to leave trenches, warned off by the British opposite. November - a Saxon unit fraternised with a Liverpool battalion. December 1915 - explicit orders by Allied commanders not to repeat previous Christmas truce. Some Units encouraged to mount raids and harass enemy line
- #12 Escape flooded trenches Pope Benedict XV : "that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang."