On this date 100 years ago my great uncle, Corporal Ernest Clifford (“Cliff”) Sexton, US Army, was killed in action in Europe two days before the armistice ending World War I.

Glory to all fallen heroes.

Lest We Forget..

My God always bless him and the others who have fallen.

My maternal grandfather (b. 1900), dropped out of college to join the Army in 1917, but he didn't get sent overseas. I often consider how things might have gone differently.

Thank you to Corporal Ernest Clifford (“Cliff”) Sexton, to your father for his WW II service, and to you Sigfreund for your service.

Your family has left a lasting legacy of service to our country.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:
On this date 100 years ago my great uncle, Corporal Ernest Clifford (“Cliff”) Sexton, US Army, was killed in action in Europe two days before the armistice ending World War I.

Glory to all fallen heroes.

Amen.

I have pictures of my grandfathers, both in uniform, posing for the camera. The Great War seems a long time ago. God Bless your uncle for his sacrifice.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: greco,

We will remember them.

Today I'm remembering my maternal grandfather, Private William Victor Collins 6th Dragoon Guards, who died on the night of 21/22 June 1917.

In total, eleven members of my family served in WW1, from the very beginning in August 1914, right up to the end, and beyond. Only one died, but all were wounded, and all but one gassed.

Today here in UK, we have had a Remembrance Day parade attended, for the first time ever, by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany - a strange sight indeed, as you may imagine.

As well as the usual Royal Family, all of whom have served in the armed forces, some in actual combat, like Andrew and Harry [Philip was not outside, but was watching], there were more than ten thousand veterans, followed up, for the first time, by ten thousand members of the public for whom war has a personal resonance.

David Dimbleby pointed out that if, instead, the column of marchers today had consisted of a one-for-one representation of the British and Commonwealth dead of WW1, the column of marchers past the Cenotaph would have begun in Newcastle, some 290 miles to the North of the Cenotaph.

A Day of Remembrance indeed.

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
David Dimbleby pointed out that if, instead, the column of marchers today had consisted of a one-for-one representation of the British and Commonwealth dead of WW1, the column of marchers past the Cenotaph would have begun in Newcastle, some 290 miles to the North of the Cenotaph.

A Day of Remembrance indeed.

The horror of combat in World War I is beyond imagining. The first day of the Battle of the Somme saw nearly 20,000 British soldiers killed. One battle. One day.
Sixty percent of the British officers involved in the battle were killed. Three out of every five: killed.

And yet one of the great ironies of WW I was discussed recently in The Wall Street Journal. The war was so horrible that it led to very strong peace movements, especially among the clergy of various countries. Those movements and pressures were partially responsible for the reluctance of the later Western Allies to resist Hitler’s aggression. Neville Chamberlain is tarred with history’s brush as supposedly contributing to Hitler’s early successes, but the blame must be shared among the countless other people who felt the same way.

John Stuart Mill observed that “War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things.” World War I, as John Keegan said, may have been “a tragic and unnecessary conflict,” but what is amazing to me is that despite its horrors Britain and France ultimately chose to go to war again only 21 years later against the same enemy.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by tacfoley:
David Dimbleby pointed out that if, instead, the column of marchers today had consisted of a one-for-one representation of the British and Commonwealth dead of WW1, the column of marchers past the Cenotaph would have begun in Newcastle, some 290 miles to the North of the Cenotaph.

A Day of Remembrance indeed.

The horror of combat in World War I is beyond imagining. The first day of the Battle of the Somme saw nearly 20,000 British soldiers killed. One battle. One day.
Sixty percent of the British officers involved in the battle were killed. Three out of every five: killed.

And yet one of the great ironies of WW I was discussed recently in The Wall Street Journal. The war was so horrible that it led to very strong peace movements, especially among the clergy of various countries. Those movements and pressures were partially responsible for the reluctance of the later Western Allies to resist Hitler’s aggression. Neville Chamberlain is tarred with history’s brush as supposedly contributing to Hitler’s early successes, but the blame must be shared among the countless other people who felt the same way.

John Stuart Mill observed that “War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things.” World War I, as John Keegan said, may have been “a tragic and unnecessary conflict,” but what is amazing to me is that despite its horrors Britain and France ultimately chose to go to war again only 21 years later against the same enemy.

In a British empire of just over 300 million population, more than 3 million were killed or wounded. Figure the percentage of the population that was actually a) male, b) military age and c) fit for service, and the scope of that number is staggering. And that was just the British. In many ways, they never fully recovered from the loss of such a large portion of that generation.