Silent Night: The Story of the World War I Christmas Truce - Softcover

Weintraub, Director The Institute For The Arts And Humanities Stanley

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0452283671 ISBN 13: 9780452283671

Publisher: Plume Books, 2002

Synopsis

In the early months of World War I, on Christmas Eve, men on both sides of the trenches laid down their arms and joined in a spontaneous celebration. Despite orders to continue shooting, the unofficial truce spread across the front lines. Even the participants found what they were doing incredible: Germans placed candlelit Christmas trees on trench parapets, warring soldiers sang carols, and men on both sides shared food parcels from home. They climbed from the trenches to meet in "No Man's Land" where they buried the dead, exchanged gifts, ate and drank together, and even played soccer.

Throughout his narrative, Stanley Weintraub uses the stories of the men who were there, as well as their letters and diaries, to illuminate the fragile truce and bring to life this extraordinary moment in time.

About this title

Review:

"Weintraub has brought an obscure and bizarre incident to life with a flair that gives the reader a detailed glimpse of a unique Christmas story." The Seattle Times
"Deeply moving." The Boston Globe
"Reveals [Weintraub's] skill as a researcher and deftness as a narrator." Publishers Weekly
"Weintraub does an excellent job of preserving for posterity this remarkable wartime truce." The New American"

About the Author:

Stanley Weintraub is Evan Pugh Professor Emeritus of Arts and Humanities at Pennsylvania State University, and the author of numerous histories and biographies, including Silent Night.

About this edition

• Publisher: Plume Books
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0452283671
• ISBN 13: 9780452283671
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 240