On Christmas Eve 1914, an event that seemed unreal at the time and has not been recorded in history since, occurred on the Western front. The weather took a turn for the worse and began to freeze the slush and water in the trenches where the soldiers were.
British sentries soon began to report that there appeared to be small lights, raised on poles or bayonets, in the German trenches. Although these lanterns clearly illuminated the German troops, the British held their fire. British officers also began reporting that they saw, through binoculars, that some enemy troops were holding small pine boughs over their heads with lighted candles in their branches. The Germans, who celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, were extending holiday greetings to their enemies.
A few German soldiers began to sing Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht! The British immediately recognized the melody and began singing Silent Night. The harmony of the carol was soon heard along the entire line.
One of the most unusual incidents in military history occurred shortly after. One by one, soldiers on both sides laid down their weapons and ventured into no man's land - too many of them to prevent their superior officers from objecting. An undeclared truce had broken out spontaneously, against all orders and the rules of military combat.
For the next 24 hours, officers and men from both sides tentatively met in no man's land. They did their best to communicate with one another. They buried each other's dead. They shook hands and exchanged whatever they could as gifts.
The only shots fired were heard when two partridges took flight and soldiers tried to shoot them to add to their Christmas dinner rations. There were reliable reports that an informal soccer match took place between the Germans and the British. It was even reported that a German barber offered his services to British troops.
The truce ended just as it had begun - by mutual agreement. A captain on the British side fired three shots into the air at 8.30 a.m. on December 26th and then climbed onto his parapet. A German officer soon appeared on his parapet. They bowed, saluted and climbed back into their trenches. A few moments later, the Germans fired two shots into the air and the ceasefire was ended just as quickly and unexpectedly as it had begun.
This Christmas armistice was truly a phenomenon and nothing like it was ever recorded during the four subsequent Christmases of the war.
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