War and Christmas

Christmas and war are no strangers to each other. Why should they be? After all, Christmas is really just another day, and war very seldom takes a day off.

It was on Christmas day, 1776, that Washington crossed the Delaware river and launched a surprise attack against the Hessian Garrison in Trenton, New Jersey. The Hessians were German mercenaries, employed by the British, and Washington caught them unawares and unprepared. It was Christmas after all, and they were celebrating. Washington's defeat of the Hessians revitalized the flagging spirits of the colonists and their army and was a turning point in the War for Independence.



Christmas and war again came together to form the stuff of history and legend during the early days of World War I. The forlorn armies of that terrible war lived in close proximity, sometimes less than 60 yards apart, each dug deep into their miserable trenches and separated by a strip of killing ground ominously called "no man's land".

The war was in it's early days, 1914, but already many thousands of troops, on both sides, had been killed before the lines were drawn and the trenches dug. Soldiers on both sides would sometimes call out to each other, making jokes and sharing wisecracks. A strange sort of camaraderie was beginning to take shape, much to the distress and disapproval of the generals commanding the war.


Pope Benedict XV actually called for a temporary halt to the war in order to celebrate Christmas. The German commanders agreed, but the Allied commanders refused to entertain the notion. Nevertheless, all along the front, troops did indeed enjoy an unofficial truce. Soldiers from both sides met in No Man's Land and shared songs, cigarettes, and stories. Some played games. Then the war commenced once more and no such respite was seen again. Almost 9,000,000 soldiers and 6,500,000 civilians were killed, on both sides, during the next four years.

I am not a religious person, perhaps I once was...a very long time ago. Peace is a word that one hears quite often over the Christmas holidays. Peace on Earth is the central theme of Christmas. The prayer of Christmas is that the Prince of Peace is born and calls for Goodwill towards all men. In the spirit of Christmas I offer this video.

John Lennon: Happy Christmas (War Is Over)