Nov 11th, 2018, 11:00 AM
At the 11th hour of the 11th day, of the 11th month, in the year 1918, an Armistice was finally called between the Entente and what was left of the Central Powers. This would be what most would recognize as the end of The Great War -- World War 1. That day is now 100 years ago.
This was a war that was truly a World war: from the seas of the Americas, to the trenches of France and Belgium, the mountains of the Balkans, the fields of Russia, the deserts of the Middle East, the colonies of Africa, and the islands of the Pacific. Every continent that was inhabited (i.e. excluding Antarctica) had a hand in fighting this war. Before it was finally over, it would claim between 15 and 19 million lives (including civilians). This would only be beaten by World War 2.
Those years were a bloody and senseless conflict of hubris, fervent nationalism, and death. An entire generation of men was sentenced to an early grave, and all for, as Ferdinand Foch would prophetically call it, "an armistice for 20 years." If you wish to learn more about it, in all its depressing and horrific glory, The Great War is a Youtube channel that chronicles the conflict week by week. Even if you don't want to know its horrific details, I suggest at least watching the recaps so that you can see the terrifying extent that this war went to. We should always remember the lessons this war taught us. Lest We Forget...
This was a war that was truly a World war: from the seas of the Americas, to the trenches of France and Belgium, the mountains of the Balkans, the fields of Russia, the deserts of the Middle East, the colonies of Africa, and the islands of the Pacific. Every continent that was inhabited (i.e. excluding Antarctica) had a hand in fighting this war. Before it was finally over, it would claim between 15 and 19 million lives (including civilians). This would only be beaten by World War 2.
Those years were a bloody and senseless conflict of hubris, fervent nationalism, and death. An entire generation of men was sentenced to an early grave, and all for, as Ferdinand Foch would prophetically call it, "an armistice for 20 years." If you wish to learn more about it, in all its depressing and horrific glory, The Great War is a Youtube channel that chronicles the conflict week by week. Even if you don't want to know its horrific details, I suggest at least watching the recaps so that you can see the terrifying extent that this war went to. We should always remember the lessons this war taught us. Lest We Forget...