What Price Flanders' Fields?

In Memory Of Flanders' Fields
To the ones that survived, it was always known as The Great War. Only those people that weren't there used the Roman numeral "I" in order to differentiate it from the Second World War.

The First World War was slaughter on an industrial scale, unimaginable today.

Whole classes of English, Canadian, Australian, and New Zealand school boys often joined as a unit. They trained together and went off to the front as a group. There, they fought alongside one another.

And many times, they died together. Often to a man, they fell in the poppy-covered fields of Flanders Belgium.

And we shouldn't forget the French. Over 1 million died successfully defending their homeland from the German invader.

The Russians lost even more in the struggle.

Later, we Americans went "over there," and helped.

But it was really the British Navy's blockade that finally put a stop to the killing.

On the 11th hour, of the 11th month, in 1918, the guns fell silent.

It was in memory of their sacrifices that people from allied (and associated) countries began wearing the red poppy (from the poem Flanders' Fields) on November 11th. We now wear the poppy to honor all veterans.

Let us all spare a thought for the Veterans of many nations that fought in wars to keep people free.

EdWonk's Note: Consider reading the poem Flanders' Fields over at The Cabarfeidh Pages (Highland Warriors). It's a great blog authored by Dave Terron, who is a retired soldier from a Highland Regiment that was there. (And the poppies seen above are Dave's also.)