Lest We Forget - 100 years since the end of WW1

[Deleted member 15344]

There are 53

Also a number of them are doubly thankful because all the men that did go came home

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thankful_Villages

 

[Old Skier]

Had the privilege to be at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday night, the most moving experience I have ever experienced.

The parents of Sarah Bryant had put a film together and there wasn't a dry eye in the place.

If you ever get the chance to attend I recommend it.

 

[Deleted member 16999]

Had the privilege to be at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday night, the most moving experience I have ever experienced.

The parents of Sarah Bryant had put a film together and there wasn't a dry eye in the place.

If you ever get the chance to attend I recommend it.

It was very dusty in our living room when it was shown.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Thought I read somewhere there wasn't a community in Wales, Scotland or Ireland that didn't lose someone.

They are Thankful Villages - and I read on-line that there are thirteen Doubly Thankful Villages across the whole of the UK - lost no-one across both WWI and WWII

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Whilst the last 3 mins 20 seconds of blackadder goes forth does the rounds I will always remind my daughter of WW1

She may be one and a half but I made her watch it with me today. Didn’t have a clue what daddy was showing her but in time she will understand

Quite agree.
And 'Oh What a Lovely War' should be shown to every secondary school pupil.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Thought I read somewhere there wasn't a community in Wales, Scotland or Ireland that didn't lose someone.

Our small Ayrshire village lost about 20 men in WW1, inc two VC's.
No men at all in WW2

Picture of a battalion of Cameron Highlands at Edinburgh Castle before and after WW1. Only about 20 men in the after picture.

 

[SocketRocket]

Lions led by donkeys. Breaks my heart to see how they were butchered, i just cant get my head around 60,000 dead in a day. Poor lads.

Here in this graveyard that's still no mans land
the rows of white crosses in mute witness stand
to mans great indifference to his fellow man
and a whole generation
lay butchered and damned.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Lions led by donkeys. Breaks my heart to see how they were butchered, i just cant get my head around 60,000 dead in a day. Poor lads.

Here in this graveyard that's still no mans land
the rows of white crosses in mute witness stand
to mans great indifference to his fellow man
and a whole generation
lay butchered and damned.

to which sadness I'll add

Now the sun shines down on the green fields of France
a warm summer wind makes the red poppys dance
The trenches have vanished under the plows,
there's no gas no barbed wire, there's no guns firing now
but here in this graveyard it's still No Man's land,
the countless white crosses stand mute in the sand
for man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
to a whole generation that was butchered and damned

Did they beat the drum slowly did they play the fife lowly,
did they sound the death march as they lowered you down
did the band play the last post and chorus,
did the pipes play the "Flowers of the Forest"

 

[backwoodsman]

Do i stick my head above the parapet or not? Oh heck, why not...

We are over-sensitive & maudlin about an event that took place (now just) over 100 years ago - brutal, and seemingly senseless, as it was. Which is meaningless unless we learn the lesson & do something.

Oh, wasn't it horrible, oh wasnt it awful, so much so that we must remember it & we must never let it happen again. Well, we have forgotten - we as in the worlds population that is - and we did let it happen again.

for man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
to a whole generation that was butchered and damned.

As recently as 1994, in a small country in Africa - Rwanda - the best part of 1million people were slaughtered in just 100 days. (The equivalent of the total British casualties in WW1 in just 6% of the time). And we just stood by & watched. Now that is what l call blind indifference.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Do i stick my head above the parapet or not? Oh heck, why not...

We are over-sensitive & maudlin about an event that took place (now just) over 100 years ago - brutal, and seemingly senseless, as it was. Which is meaningless unless we learn the lesson & do something.

Oh, wasn't it horrible, oh wasnt it awful, so much so that we must remember it & we must never let it happen again. Well, we have forgotten - we as in the worlds population that is - and we did let it happen again.

for man's blind indifference to his fellow man,
to a whole generation that was butchered and damned.

As recently as 1994, in a small country in Africa - Rwanda - the best part of 1million people were slaughtered in just 100 days. (The equivalent of the total British casualties in WW1 in just 6% of the time). And we just stood by & watched. Now that is what l call blind indifference.

It is indeed - and maybe at this moment of reflection we pledge to not just accept and stand aside when we see modern day atrocities happen. We should not listen to the strident voices that would prefer us to keep out - as they shout 'not our business - they can sort themselves out - they can claim asylum - but not with us'.

We know that voice - a voice that is heard very loud and too often these days.

 

[SocketRocket]

It is indeed - and maybe at this moment of reflection we pledge to not just accept and stand aside when we see modern day atrocities happen. We should not listen to the strident voices that would prefer us to keep out - as they shout 'not our business - they can sort themselves out - they can claim asylum - but not with us'.

We know that voice - a voice that is heard very loud and too often these days.

Thats a bit of indifference to your fellow man. Only Governments can adresss such issues and the UN is supposed to be the body that takes action, not Jaden Johnson-Braithwate down the road.

 

[Parsaregood]

I totally get and respect the significance of this years remembrance focusing on WW1 but going forward, how much will the general public continue to give think of those fallen? Is it now time for the attention, particularly in the media to turn this back to a moment to pause and reflect on the lost from all campaigns

Everyone from all campaigns is remembered but ww1 was the first war fought by the common man and not career soldiers, it's the reason there is a remembrance day. The soldiers in ww1 had to put up with more stuff than any soldier in ww2 or any other war of the 20th or 21st century, the infantry in the trenches were faced with the decision to go over the top into artillery, rifle, machine gun fire or be shot by an officer on the spot if they didn't. This isn't even mentioning the horrific conditions they had to live under. Choice of get shot here or go over and maybe not get shot. The 1 million British servicemen who died in this war, and servicemen from all other wars deserve all the remeberance and in my mind anybody who fights frontline for their country is a hero. My great grandfather lost his 3 brothers in ww1 and I hate how modern society is soo quick to forget. I wonder how many people nowadays would fight for their country's sovereignty if it was under threat, i know I would but society today isn't what it should be.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Everyone from all campaigns is remembered but ww1 was the first war fought by the common man and not career soldiers, it's the reason there is a remembrance day. The soldiers in ww1 had to put up with more stuff than any soldier in ww2 or any other war of the 20th or 21st century, the infantry in the trenches were faced with the decision to go over the top into artillery, rifle, machine gun fire or be shot by an officer on the spot if they didn't. This isn't even mentioning the horrific conditions they had to live under. Choice of get shot here or go over and maybe not get shot. The 1 million British servicemen who died in this war, and servicemen from all other wars deserve all the remeberance and in my mind anybody who fights frontline for their country is a hero. My great grandfather lost his 3 brothers in ww1 and I hate how modern society is soo quick to forget. I wonder how many people nowadays would fight for their country's sovereignty if it was under threat, i know I would but society today isn't what it should be.

I totally get it. My maternal and paternal great grandparents both served and were fortunate enough to get through it physically unscathed although I think my maternal granddad suffered terribly from what I was told with what he'd seen. I respect all they did in a war to end all wars and all that everyone did a mere twenty one years later and completely agree that without the sacrifices made this could be a very different place to live