Suppose They Gave a War and No-one Came – The WWI Christmas Truce of 1914

During the anti-Vietnam War movement of the 1960s, this phrase became popular – “Suppose they gave a war and nobody came.” The idea being that everyday soldiers could end war by declining to fight. And there was a time, Christmas 1914, when opposing soldiers stopped fighting, on their own, and peace reigned over the battlefield, at least for one day.

The line itself has its origins in an epic poem by Carl Sandberg called “The People, Yes.” The poem, written in 1936, includes this exchange with a young girl:

The little girl saw her first troop parade and asked,
“What are those?”
“Soldiers.”
“What are Soldiers?”
“They are for war. They fight and each tries to kill
as many of the other side as he can.”
The girl held still and studied.
“Do you know…I know something?”
“Yes, what is it you know?”
“Sometime they’ll give a war and nobody will come.”

In 1966, the mother of draft resister Gene Keyes wrote a widely read magazine article about her son and his Vietnam war protests entitled “Suppose they Gave a War and No-one Came.” (click on the title to read the article) In the article, she describes her son burning his draft card on Christmas Eve. As her son stated: “Christmas Eve reminds us of our duty to work for peace on Earth…”

Zor and Zam by the Monkeys

A few years later, the Monkees (yes, those Monkees), performed a song called Zor and Zam, about two kings starting a war. But no-one shows up, and the song ends:

“Two little kings playing a game.
They gave a war and nobody came.”

World War I was horrific beyond any previous war fought by mankind. For the first time, mass industrialization supported mass slaughter on the battlefield. Instead of the war ending by Christmas, 1914, as many thought, it had stalemated on the Western Front, with over 1 million already dead.

British and German troops started a spontaneous truce on Christmas Eve. It started with the singing of Christmas Carols across no man’s land between the trenches. On Christmas Day, German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approached the Allies. The men exchanged gifts of cigarettes and food and played some friendly games of soccer. Amid the horror of war, this was a symbolic moment of peace. By some estimates, about 100,000 thousand soldiers on both sides participated in the informal truce.

Snoopy’s Xmas, Royal Guardsmen

The truce appears in several songs and books. In the song “Snoopy’s Christmas” by the Royal Guardsman, Snoopy and the Red Baron meet in the air on Christmas. The Red Baron, Snoopy’s nemesis, has him in his sights. Instead of shooting him down, the Red Baron spares him, shouting out:

When the Baron cried out "Merry Christmas, *mein friend*!"

The Baron then offered a holiday toast
And Snoopy our hero saluted his host
And then with a roar they were both on their way
Each knowing they'd meet on some other day

Garth Brooks released a song entitled “Belleau Wood.” He describes the Christmas truce as a brief moment of peace:

Belleau Woods, Garth Brooks

Oh, the snowflakes fell in silence
Over Belleau Wood that night
For a Christmas truce had been declared
By both sides of the fight

As we lay there in our trenches
The silence broke in two
By a German soldier singing
A song that we all knew
…
No, heaven's not beyond the clouds
It's for us to find it here

Ironically, the battle of Belleau Woods occurred in the summer of 1918 and there was no truce (Christmas or otherwise) between the Germans and Americans who fought there. Next time I see Garth I’ll ask him about this inconsistency.

British and German Troops playing Soccer in No-Man’s Land

Alas, the Christmas truce did not last. The officers and generals issued orders ending the ceasefire. In 1915, the leaders prevented any truce from re-occurring. And by 1916, the soldiers were so hardened by the War; there was no longer interest in a truce.

The after-effects of World War I were tremendous. Direct casualties approximated 40 million. The Russian Revolution, a direct result of the War, caused millions more deaths in the Russian Civil War that followed. And untold more millions then lost their lives as a result of Communism. World War I led eventually to Hitler’s rise in Germany and World War II, with another 70 million or more casualties.

Imagine if the soldiers of World War 1 had been able to stop the War. How many lives could they have saved? Imagine if in World War I, they gave a war and the men refused to come or refused to fight?

Let us hope that 2024 sees an end to war, and there will be peace on Earth.

Enjoy the Holidays!