On November 11th at eleven in the morning the bells of London rang out their joyous peals, for the armistice had been signed and the war was over. There was wild rejoicing in the city and the crowds went crazy with delight. But it seemed to me that behind the ringing of those peals of joy there was the tolling of spectral bells for those who would return no more. The monstrous futility of war as a test of national greatness, the wound in the world’s heart, the empty homes, those were the thoughts which in me overmastered all feelings of rejoicing.
Frederick George Scott, The Great War As I Saw It, Ch XXXV. Victory. November 11th, 1918.
In this week of remembrance, may we learn from war as we strive for peace … and freedom and democracy and equality and justice.
Great War 100 Reads 