The Christmas Miracle

British and German soldiers sharing camaraderie and good will during the "Christmas Truce of 1914"

PLOEGSTEERT, Belgium (AP) — On the side of a wind-swept field covered with scorpion weed, a simple wooden cross marks a unique event in football history.
At its base, amid wreaths of poppies, lie a smattering of balls and various club pennants, all in remembrance of the Christmas Truce of 1914.
A century ago on Christmas Day, German and British enemies left their World War I trenches and headed into no man’s land in a few scattered locations on the Western Front for an unofficial truce among soldiers. Some eyewitness accounts say they were highlighted by something as remarkable as a few football kick-abouts.
“Suddenly a Tommy came with a football,” wrote Lt. Johannes Niemann of Germany, referring to a British soldier. “Teams were quickly established for a match on the frozen mud, and the Fritzes beat the Tommies 3-2.”
If not fully-fledged matches, other soldier’s diaries and various reports also spoke of balls being kicked about in friendship.more
These were the young men who had survived (British, French, and German KIA/WIA 270,000) the The First Battle of Ypres, October - November, 1914 (there were two later battles in the Ypres area) which the Germans named 'Kindermord von Ypern', roughly translated as 'The Massacre of the Innocents of Ypres' more.
The soldiers of all three armies, some of whom had been fighting since early August, had been told the usual tripe by their 'leaders' that they would be "home for Christmas" (many of them never would make it home). Suddenly, on Christmas day men spontaneously came out of their trenches from both sides. According to Lt. Charles Brockman "a huge crowd was between the trenches. Someone produced a little rubber ball so of course a football (soccer) match started," he wrote in his diary.

What really mattered is that young men who had been killing each other on the field of battle and would continue to do so for four more long years, could share camaraderie and good will with each other and remember what Christmas Day was really about despite being caught up in the midst of ambitions of empires. Thus was the European mindset then. I doubt we will ever see such camaraderie and goodwill again. I hope and pray that I am wrong.

Cross of St. George, patron saint of all Christian soldiers

Organize, Prepare, Train for the tyrants are at your door!