Der Spiegel: Lazare Ponticelli, the last poilu

Romain Leick on the differing retrospections between France and Germany on WW1: The Symbolic Power of French Victory
 
Lazare Ponticelli was France's last surviving WW1 Veteran.  He passed in 2008.

Whenever the topic came up over the course of his biblically long life, Lazare Ponticelli always doggedly rejected the idea of being buried in a state funeral. But shortly before his death, under pressure from both the media and political leaders, he gave his consent for a solemn ceremony, "without much fuss and without a big parade, in the name of all those who died, men and women."

 

Ponticelli was the last recognized veteran of in France, the last living survivor of the more than 8 million people who were called to arms by the French Republic. Of that number, some 1.4 million did not survive the massive slaughter. When Ponticelli passed away on March 12, 2008, in Le Kremlin-Bicêtre near Paris, at the age of 110, his death moved the entire nation.

Der Spiegel: Disaster Centennial: The Disturbing Relevance of World War I

From Der Spiegel's piece on the start of the WW1 Centennial year,

 
The survivors of World War I included Franz Warremann, a journeyman bricklayer from the northeastern German city of Rostock, whose grandson, Joachim Gauck, is Germany's president today. Warremann brought home a helmet from the front that had been dented when it was grazed by a bullet just above his left temple. He had apparently been extremely lucky.
 
The dented helmet has since been lost, says Gauck in his office at Bellevue Palace in Berlin, but the sight of it created such a strong impression on him that he could "still draw it" today.
 
When his grandfather got together with other veterans in the evening and they talked about the war, young Joachim was always surprised at how exuberant they seemed. How could they be so happy after those harrowing experiences?
 
Only much later did he understand that the men treasured spending time with fellow soldiers who had also looked death in the eye in the trenches. Only they could understand what it meant.
 
And that was why they were celebrating life.

 

REVEALED: How wartime Germans were banned from eating sausages to make Zeppelins

REVEALED: How wartime Germans were banned from eating sausages to make Zeppelins

Comment: The generals of the First World War were heroes, not fools

On the coming revisionism in WW1 History.  Sophie Shrubsole on the first rewrite and the one to come.

It took literature and some key individuals to change history.  As one of my university lecturers once said to me, history does not happen, it is written, and that principle could not be applied more strongly to the case of First World War history.

With the publication of Alan Clark's The Donkeys (1961) and the production of Joan Littlewood's musical Oh! What a Lovely War (1963), a wave of popular history provided the foundation through which all subsequent knowledge of the First World War is filtered - precisely the problem with which we are now faced.  Historians and thespians took the critical words of those men that had a grudge and an agenda to push, namely Lloyd George and Churchill, thus generating the idea that generals were both inept and callous.

But beyond the Blackadder episodes there is a raft of history that is desperate to break into the mainstream.  No one doubts that there were a handful of poor officers at various stages of the command structure who made bad decisions that ultimately cost the lives of hundreds of men.

But as a country, we seem to forget as a matter of course that 1918 brought us victory.  Could this have been possible against the might of Germany's Imperial Army with such incompetent leadership?  Clearly there is another history to expose.

Comment: The generals of the First World War were heroes, not fools

Black Watch prepare for Great War Centenary

We're not very aware yet of the centenary in the US.  The UK is.

Black Watch prepare for Great War Centenary

A statue of a Black Watch soldier is to be erected in Belgium to commemorate the more than 8000 officers and soldiers who died in the costliest chapter of the world-famous regiment’s history.

It will also pay tribute to more than 20,000 who were wounded in the First World War.

The unveiling of the larger-than-life bronze statue at Black Watch Corner near Ypres in the spring of 2014 will mark the start of four years of commemorative events recalling the sacrifices of all who fought in the war.

The erection of this statue, and the pilgrimage by Black Watch veterans and serving soldiers to the Flanders site that proved to be a pivotal battleground in 1914, will be the first Scottish event in the worldwide Great War centenary commemorations.

First World War poet Hedd Wyn’s home to become a museum | First World War Centenary

 

Funding has been secured by the Snowdonia National Park Authority (SNPA) to turn the home of First World War poet, Hedd Wyn, into a museum and interpretation centre.

The Grade II listed farmhouse, called Yr Ysgrwn, is near Trawsfynydd in Gwynedd, Wales. An award of nearly £150,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) will be used to secure its future as a tourist attraction.

The chair of HLF Wales, Dr Manon Williams, said: ‘Hedd Wyn is one of Wales’ heroes and it is fitting that this project should be developed as part of the First World War commemorations.’

Hedd Wyn’s real name was Ellis Humphrey Evans. He became a successful Welsh-language poet before the First World War and had won several prizes at eisteddfodau – festivals of literature and poetry. In 1916, he won second place at the National Eisteddfod. He vowed to win first place the following year.

But in early 1917, Hedd Wyn joined the 15th battalion of the Royal Welch Fusiliers and left for the Western Front in June. He was killed in action on 31 July during the Battle of Pilckem Ridge.

First World War poet Hedd Wyn’s home to become a museum | First World War Centenary

First American Casualty In WWI From Kansas, Honored

The First American Officer to die in WW1.

You might not know it, but a Kansan has a major place in World War One history, and his hometown took time to honor him today.

Thanks to a dedication ceremony, this piece of history will always be remembered.

Lieutenant William T. Fitzsimons was the first American officer to die in World War One. The story had been lost over time, but through a little digging, it was finally uncovered.

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The FItzsimons Army Medical Center was renamed after him in 1920 by the U.S. Army. He also has a memorial and fountain in Kansas City, where his family moved during his late childhood.

The health system's Rehabilitation and Wellness Services facility was going through a renovation, and they decided the side of the building would be a perfect place for a mural of Fitzsimons.

"It was high time for Burlington to honor his memory," Campbell said.

Fitzsimons attended the University of Kansas School of Medicine and volunteered with the Army Medical Reserve Corps in Europe before the United States joined the Allies in the war. After the U.S. joined the war, he went back over to France.

He died in 1917 when a bomb struck his field hospital in France.

First American Casualty In WWI From Kansas, Honored