1914 Christmas Truce - First World War

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Truce in the trenches: Diary of British Army Captain Robert Hamilton
Details of the Christmas truces on the Western Front in 1914 have came out in a previously unseen diary of Robert Hamilton. As one of the officers in the 1st Bn the Royal Warwickshire Regiment, he left his trench near the Belgian hamlet of St Yvon. The 48-hour local cease-fire they negotiated was the inspiration for truces up and down the trenches. His diary runs Aug 5, 1914 - Jan 12, 1915. On Xmas Eve he got a message that "the Germans wanted to talk to us". He "heard the Germans shouting, 'Are you the Warwicks?' To which our own men responded, 'Come and see'. They said 'You come half way, and we will come half way and bring you some cigars'." [ telegraph :: 2007-12-27 ]

The Christmas truce of 1914 in trenches along the Western Front
December 1914 the German high command decided it was time to improve morale: a Christmas tree was sent out to every German unit. It seemed such a little thing, but it sparked an unique revolt in military history. On Christmas Eve, French and British troops saw the lights and wondered if an attack was at hand. In some areas German troops sent over messengers with the request: will you join us in a concert tonight, with no shooting? In other regiments, soldiers held up "No Shoot!" signs. One British soldier recited how the two sides swapped carols back and forth: British regiment starting off with "The First Noel" the Germans answering with "O Tannenbaum"... [ summitdaily :: 2007-12-23 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

Don't trust them a yard! - British officer in Xmas Day truce of 1914
It was a moment of humanity at the start of WWI. On Christmas Day 1914 the guns fell silent and British and German troops emerged from their trenches to shake hands. But while his unarmed men crossed over into No Man's Land, captain Reginald Hobbs remained in his trench on the Western Front fearing it was a ploy by the Germans to entice his company to certain death. "I've just warned my sentries to be extra on the look out because I don't trust 'em a yard... I thought they must be up to some game, digging new trenches or something, so I sent a few of my fellows out to see - they walked up to the groups, shook hands and chatted in a most friendly way for quite an hour..." [ thisislondon :: 2007-03-27 ]

WW1 account of historic match between British and German soldiers
Military historians have dug out the diary of Regimental Sergeant Major George Beck, who chronicled the events of the Christmas Eve armistice of 1914 when British and German soldiers engaged in a soccer match in the icy mud of No Man's Land. His account titled "Not a shot fired" details the events when soldiers of the Kaiser's army came forward to hand out drinks and cigars to British Tommies and invited them over to a game of soccer. "Christmas Eve, 1914, and not a shot fired. The Germans ask to play football and hand out drink and cigars. They are eager to swop almost anything for our bully beef," the veteran of the Boer War, in a trench near St Yves writes. [ zeenews :: 2007-03-12 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

When soldiers decided to put down their weapons and play soccer
Article no longer available from the original source.
Christmas during wartime is an unusual experience. For those who found themselves in 1914 fighting on the western front in the conflict that would be called World War 1, the combatants found a way celebrating the season. On Christmas day, in a spontaneous gesture, both sides across most of the front laid down their arms and met to have a few hours of merriment despite the grim conditions. Wisdom at the time said that the soldiers would be home in a matter of months once they earned a quick victory. Both sides tried to make their trenches as merry as possible, decorating what were mud holes with trees and decorations. [ matchnight :: 2006-12-23 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

Chris de Burgh buys rare 1914 WWI letter
A rare letter by an unnamed British soldier describing the Christmas Day truce with German forces in 1914 sold for 14,400 pounds, around 40 times its estimate, to Irish singer Chris de Burgh. "He found the content extremely moving as it documented a very personal account of World War I and he believes it to be a great historical manuscript, charting the surreal events of December 25, 1914." - "Letters aren't rare in themselves. But I've been doing this since 1975 and I've never come across a letter like that describing the Christmas truce." [ thewest :: 2006-11-08 :: Letters ]

Discovered letter tells of truce of 1914 in trenches
Letter of a faceless soldier of the World War I survives, five pencilled pages of an Army-issue notebook, describing one of conflict's most poignant moments: the Christmas truce of 1914. The letter, discovered amongst unremarkable manuscripts and due for auction, tells of how British and German troops facing each other across No Man's Land put aside killing to play football and swap cigarettes. "They also gave us a few songs so we had quite a social party. Some of our chaps went over to their lines. I think they've all come back bar one. They no doubt kept him as a souvenir." The Letter should fetch between £500 and £1,000. [ telegraph :: 2006-10-18 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

Last soldier serving in 1914 Christmas truce dies, aged 109
The last veteran of the Christmas truce during the First World War died in his sleep yesterday, aged 109. Alfred Anderson, who was born in 1896, was 18 on December 25, 1914, when British and German troops climbed out of their trenches and crossed no-man's land to shake hands, sing carols and share cigarettes. The soldiers famously played football together, kicking around empty bully-beef cans and using steel helmets as goal posts. The unauthorised truce spread across much of the 500-mile Western Front, where more than a million soldiers were encamped. [ telegraph :: 2005-11-23 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

1914 football truce anniversary
This 2004 Christmas is the 90th anniversary of the WWI truce when British troops took on the Germans at football. The soldiers sang Christmas carols before leaving their trenches to play a match in sub-zero temperatures in no-man's land near Armentieres, France. The Germans won 3-2, according to some soldiers, and the truce gradually came to an end in the same way it had begun - by mutual consent. "By the end of 1915 both sides were far too bitter for this to happen again, " Andrew Robertshaw. [ bbc :: 2004-12-24 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

WWI Christmas Truce Started By Thousands Of German Soldiers
The Christmas truce of the Great War in 1914 was started by a "peace movement" of German soldiers who won over their trenchbound British foes by lobbing chocolate cake at them instead of hand grenades, a new book claims. The interpretation of the events on the Western Front on Christmas Eve 1914 is made by Michael Jürgs whose book, The Small Peace in the Great War is the first to be written about the ceasefire from a German perspective. [ rense :: 2003-04-14 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

Soldiers playing football together in No Man's Land on Christmas day
Stories tell of the British and German soldiers playing football together in No Man's Land on Christmas day - but is this just a legend? The Christmas truce of 1914 really happened. It is as much a part of the historical texture of WW I as the gas clouds of Ypres or the Battle of the Somme or the Armistice of 1918. Yet it has often been dismissed as though it were merely a myth. But the truce did take place, and on some far greater scale than has been generally realised. Though Germans and British were the main participants, French and Belgians took part as well. [ bbc :: 1998-03-09 :: 1914 Christmas Truce ]

First World War in the News is an edited review of hand-picked World War I 1914-1918 articles.