It was supposed to be the war to end all wars. Unfortunately, World War I didn’t stop war as its namesake implied, but damn, those soldiers gave it a hell of a go. I have always taken a keen interest in WWI, most likely because it isn’t focused on as much in school. There is less focus mostly due to WWII coming at its heels, but most certainly NOT because it was an unimportant piece of world history. I am a sucker for the WWI and WWII time periods in general, but today, I felt compelled to write about the former.
One of the aspects of WWI that particularly moves me is the use of gas, most notoriously in the god-awful trenches. In order of deadliness and severity, three major types of gases were used; chlorine gas, phosgene gas and mustard gas. Chlorine gas is just like it sounds- it smelled like bleach and would irritate the eyes and lungs. If enough was ingested, it could be lethal. Once, however, it was noted that it wasn’t deadly in all cases, phosgene gas was used. This gas has many of the same effects as chlorine gas, but is six times more lethal (Everts). The scariest part of this gas, to me anyways, is that often soldiers had NO idea they had been exposed to a lethal dose. In fact, it would sometimes take days for the soldier’s lungs to fill and they would die slowly and painfully. This gas was utilized the most out of all three, exact reasons are mere conjecture, but one major reason was that this gas was colorless and often wasn’t detected until it was too late. The last of the three chemical weapons utilized, mustard gas, was not as deadly, but did cause the most casualties in the war (Everts). *Just a refresher, guys, a casualty in terms of war, is someone who dies, is injured, taken prisoner or missing as a result of war. Mustard gas causes temporary blindness (sometimes permanent) and blisters of the skin that in conditions of trench-warfare would almost always result in infection. This gas could even stay in the soil for long periods of time and even at lower doses, wreak havoc on soldier’s eyes and skin (Everts).
Imagine yourself, standing in a trench that has 2-6 inches of putrid water in it. Your feet have open sores and all of your clothing and socks are absolutely filthy and soaked. Everything smells foul. There are rats nibbling on sleeping men, and corpses within a glance because it is too dangerous to leave the trench to dispose of them properly. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week all you hear is shell fire. There is no peace, there is no quiet. Suddenly, you begin to smell something different, or see a colored smoke and you have no choice but to leave the trench, walking directly into enemy fire, or “no man’s land” if you want any chance of surviving. To think about what those soldiers experienced, saw, felt, and lived through is equally heart breaking and dumbfounding. How a human could survive that and go back to civilian life if they were lucky enough to have the opportunity, is beyond me.
Although the idea of what we now call Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can be traced back hundreds of years, it was not until the soldiers of WWI began exhibiting “odd” and “concerning” physical and psychological symptoms that PTSD was noted. Only, at this time it was dubbed “shell shock” and it wouldn’t be officially called PTSD until many years later. Post-battle, some men trembled uncontrollably non stop, while others could be triggered by the smell of a latrine or the sight of gas. Some became mute. Some instinctively hid under anything near them at the sound of a loud bang. Some were blind or deaf (but not actually blind or deaf). Others had amnesia and the list could go on and on. In my opinion, it is a miracle some soldiers were even remotely functioning, let alone thriving post-WW.
Perhaps though, we could use that as a lesson in our own lives. We could look at it as the beauty of the human spirit; the bravery, perseverance, comradery and love that the soldier’s possessed helped them overcome despite all odds. We should remember them for not only their courage, but their vibrance in situations that were anything but.
With that I would like to leave you with one of the most famous (and most poignant in my mind) poems in history, “In Flanders Fields” by Dr. John Macrae (Go to this link for more about him)!
In Flanders Fields
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
I hope everyone had a memorable Memorial Day weekend. I also hope that you took a few moments, even if just the moments to read this, to think about and reflect upon soldiers who gave their lives.
And that is my Monday Perspective.
Today’s song is the poem in musical form Sabaton’s “In Flanders Field” (quite different than their other music, but beautiful nonetheless)
Works Cited
Everts , Sarah. “A Brief History of Chemical War.” Sciencehistory.org, Science History Institute,
18 Apr. 2019, www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/a-brief-history-of-chemical war#:~:text=Three%20substances%20were%20responsible%20for,%2C%20phosgene%2C%20and%20mustard%20gas.
“Poem 'In Flanders Fields'.” FlandersFields.be, Westtoer,
www.flandersfields.be/en/inspiration/poem-flanders-fields.
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