We remember.
At 11 am on 11 November 1918 the guns of the Western Front fell silent after more than four years continuous warfare.
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month has now attained a special significance. The moment when hostilities ceased on the Western Front is universally associated with the remembrance of those who had died in the First World War, and indeed all wars. The first modern world conflict commencing 100 years ago in 1914 had brought about the mobilisation of over 70 million people and left between 9 and 13 million dead, perhaps as many as one-third of them with no known grave.
Despite nationalistic propaganda, which continues to this day, the First World War was not about good vs evil or right vs wrong. It was a devastating and unnecessary war instigated by ruling class elites to fulfil their own motives for power and wealth. What an evil waste of so many young lives, ordinary decent folk on both sides of the war.
The bravery of the Australian and New Zealand solders at Gallipoli is now the stuff of legends, as are the exploits of the Light Horse in Egypt and Palestine. However these battles cannot compare to the scale of conflict on the Western Front. In July 1916 Australian infantry were introduced to combat at Fromelles, where they suffered 5,533 casualties in 24 hours. By the end of the year about 40,000 Australians had been killed or wounded on the Western Front. In 1917 a further 76,836 Australians became casualties in battles, such Bullecourt, Messines, and the four-month campaign around Ypres, known as the battle of Passchendaele.
I honour and respect the bravery and sacrifice of all these soldiers, and I never question their sincere loyalty or motives. They were heroes. But I refuse to respect the leadership of the nations that fought this war, and I despise the "Empire" that devoured the youth of our own nation, which was not yet even 15 years old.
For our own country, the First World War remains the most costly conflict in terms of deaths and casualties. From a population of fewer than five million, 416,809 men enlisted, of which over 60,000 were killed and 156,000 wounded, gassed, or taken prisoner.
These numbers are staggering. We are indeed fortunate not to have lived in such times.
My great grandfather in Victoria could have been sent to the war. However, he had a Dutch name which the authorities thought was a German name so they would not let him in the armed services. I should be grateful the authorities were so ignorant, or I may never have existed.
I realize now that my Grandfather was born before the First World War, but still relieved my Great Grandfather did not have to fight.
Posted by: Paul | Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 07:24 PM
I concur with your argument, although have some sympathy for the leaders who just didn't realize what industrialization had done to world politics, armies, weapons and supply systems. They were all expecting a replay of the Franco-Prussian war for the purpose of tweaking a few national boundaries. That said, I do find them severely negligent at letting it continue passed 12 months when the human cost and lack of a short term solution became clear.
Posted by: PythonMagus | Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 06:32 PM