On the politics of remembering Word War I - KansasCity.com

Lisa Budreau on the politics of remembrance,

Following Armistice Day, the U.S. government took charge of the identification, burial and memorialization of American service members who died overseas. Secretary of War Newton Baker gave American families options. One was burial in American cemeteries to be built in Europe.

Another was to have the war dead brought back to their own communities.

“What the government didn’t expect was that the majority of Americans would choose to have their war dead brought home,” Budreau said.

One unintended result was that the remains’ return to families across the country, and the ceremonies that ensued, inhibited agreement on a single narrative that could articulate the meaning of the sacrifice.

“Commemorations are meant to unify communities, stir our collective memories and validate the sacrifices that were made,” Budreau said. “But the democratic process responds to the wishes of its citizens and cannot, by its very nature, readily contribute to an enduring national remembrance.

“I think we are still struggling with finding meaning in the ambiguity of the war’s death and suffering.”

Readorama | On the politics of remembering Word War I - KansasCity.com

Over Here The First World War and American Society (9780195173994) David M. Kennedy

A new edition with reflection on the decades since the first.

This 25th anniversary edition includes a new afterword from Pulitzer Prize-winning author David M battlefield of the mind study guide pdf. Kennedy, that explains his reasons for writing the original edition as well as his opinions on the legacy of Wilsonian idealism, most recently reflected in President George W. Bush’s national security strategy. More than a chronicle of the war years, Over Here uses the record of America’s experience in the Great War as a prism through which to view early twentieth century American society. The ways in which America mobilized for the war, chose to fight it, and then went about the business of enshrining it in memory all indicate important aspects of enduring American character.

Over Here The First World War and American Society (9780195173994) David M. Kennedy

My grandfather’s war — WWI — and how it haunted him

Sory of one Grandfather,

An Irishman, my grandfather was reticent to fight on the same side as the British Empire. Nonetheless, when President Woodrow Wilson called for volunteers, grandfather Langan joined the “78th Division, 309th Machine Gun Battalion, Company B, American Expeditionary Force in France” — a phrase that was among the first I learned to repeat as a child.

Grandfather’s 1918 U.S. Victory Medal reflects his experience fighting in the Argonne Forest, St. Mihiel and the Meuse-Argonne, a battle historians consider “probably the bloodiest single battle in U.S. history” (117,000 U.S. casualties). As a machine gunner, PFC Langan was never able to total how many men he killed (“Many,” he always replied).

Grandfather was exactly the kind of front-line killer upon whom any army depends to prevail. For me, he recalled apart from machine gunning that he killed 14 men, some in hand-to-hand combat. Not for nothing was he called “Iron Mike.”

My grandfather’s war — WWI — and how it haunted him - Issues & Ideas - MiamiHerald.com

'Humorous' German cartoons of life on the frontline in World War I are unearthed (and no, they're not funny) | Mail Online

'Humorous' German cartoons of life on the frontline in World War I are unearthed (and no, they're not funny) | Mail Online:

A fascinating collection of cartoon paintings of German soldiers on the Western Front has been discovered - and shows a little-known humourous side to the Kaiser's war machine.The images were drawn between 1914 and 1916 at the Somme and were for a senior German officer with a sense of humour.The caricatures poke fun at the officer class and a strange recurring theme is the supplying of toilet rolls to soldiers.

Check the comments for explanations on the toilet paper.  Also a question about why so many very tall soldiers, and I can only speculate it's connected to William the Great's preference for very tall Guardsmen.

Student eager to start Vimy trip

How many US Americans would know this history so important to Canadians?

Scott Morphet is getting ready for a major reality check.

He's one of about 25 students from White Pines collegiate who will mark the 95th anniversary of the Canadian capture of Vimy Ridge in France in April.

The victory, after other Allied forces were defeated by the Germans, was a major accomplishment for Canadian soldiers during the First World War. The battle marked the first time all four Canadian divisions fought together.

"We all know it's one of the biggest things that was part of Canada's history," said Morphet, 17.

"Going there is going to be a huge awakening to what it really means to be a Canadian."

Student eager to start Vimy trip - The Sault Star - Ontario, CA

Syria: World War 1 Continues

From Austin Bay’s response to Fouad Ajami’s essay on Syria as the final stage of the Cold War.  I’ve always felt as Bay below, no, this is the last act of World War 1 and the resolution of all that was left undone with the Ottoman Empire.

The current Syrian revolt, the entire Arab Spring phenomenon, and for that matter, the Cold War share a sobering (and I suggest more explanatory) origin: World War I, the Great War. Four authoritarian empires fell in that conflagration: the Ottoman Turk, the German (Hohenzollern), the Austro-Hungarian (Habsburg) and the Russian Romanov. The Western Front slaughterhouse damaged France and Britain; though decolonization came decades later, the democratic imperialists never really recovered. What to do with all the imperial fragments? The Nazis, exploiting German grievances with World War I's outcome, tried to create a super German empire, but lost. The Soviets did resurrect the Russian empire, and extended it, until 1991. Gone forever? As Ajami noted, Putin exhibits commissar tendencies. He is not above creating an empire with an authoritarian sword.

Syria: World War I Continues

Heather Jones: Violence against Prisoners of War in the First World War. Britain, France and Germany, 1914-1920. Cambridge 2011.

From the conclusion of the review,

Jones is to be commended for her balanced comparative approach. When evaluating German and Allied prisoner treatment, she considers the unique circumstances facing each captor nation, such as the size and composition of its prisoner population. Jones’ examination reveals that the German army was more willing than its enemies in Britain and France to employ brutal tactics in pursuit of victory. In doing so, she provides evidence in support of Isabel Hull’s argument that the German army’s tendency to embrace extreme, violent solutions during the Kaiserreich was facilitated by a lack of civilian control of the armed forces.[3] This meticulously researched study will require historians to reconsider mass captivity’s importance to the First World War and the conflict’s role in the evolution of forced labor. Jones accomplishes her goal of establishing the centrality of captivity to the war and demonstrates that prisoners could be open to acts of violence throughout their captivity. This book is sure to establish Jones’ reputation as one of the leading scholars of wartime captivity.

Heather Jones: Violence against Prisoners of War in the First World War. Britain, France and Germany, 1914-1920. Cambridge 2011. - H-Soz-u-Kult / Rezensionen / Bücher