We were tested the very hour when a small fleet of shells came towards us. Many of the young lads would go in a state of dumbness, lying awake without a clue of what’s going on. We couldn’t treat shell-shock. All we could do is be sympathetic, and urge them to go on; making them hope that one day they would suffer a ‘blighty’ and would return home. God was on our side today, none of us were injured, just our minds. I won’t be able to write to you till the day after tomorrow, since our machinery will be deployed and configured. Now we must just hope for the best.
Johnny
6th November, 1915
Dear Diary
We recently imported our new weaponry, the artillery, tanks and heavy duty machine guns loaded with distant range grenades. I’m going to describe these weapons of mass destruction.
Artillery
Our general emphasised that this was our most important weapon. We have positioned them strategically, so when the battle starts we will bombard the opposition with explosive shells.
Machine Guns
Machine guns would require a gun crew of four to six people. They could fire 400-600 rounds per minute. Each weighed 30kg-60kg, often without their mountings, carriages and supplies. However our commander has predicted that the Germans will face the machine gun in surprise, since they do not think it is of any importance. It is easily the most powerful gun in the battlefield, so we will show ‘em! Past experience has told me that the machine gun is not so desirable in battle, since they rapidly overheat and become inoperative without the aid of cooling mechanisms.
Johnny
7th November, 1915
Dear Diary
I would like to tell you more about the weapons we are going to use in the war. This might be the last day of peace, before the war begins.
Grenades
For close range fighting, (which was inevitable in battle) we were trained to use rifle grenades. However the Germans were ahead of us in the grenade development. Even as war begins we predict that the Germans have 70,000 hand grenades, along with a further 106,000 grenades.
Gas
Poison gas is another new weapon. We previously suffered an attack by the Germans in April. Chlorine gas worked by suffocating the lungs, and was even more lethal if you had asthma or weak chest. However mustard gas was far worse. It would only show after an hour. Your body would turn blue as your skin started to rot away. I heard from my comrades that the pain in the battle of Ypres was so great; many of the soldiers had to be strapped down. The victim’s skin blistered and their eyes bulged out. Madness begins; I fear the war has begun. My commander is calling to me, I must go.
Johnny
27th December, 1915
Dear Diary
It’s been over a month and a half since I have written to you. I am standing up to my knees in the slime of a waterlogged trench. Christmas went by two days ago.
I’m currently on the watch. My colleagues and I exchange stories about home, the baking pies, and most of all, our families. Despite the horrors and the hardships, my morale is quite high and I believe that in the New Year the nation's army will march towards a glorious victory.
We recently had a meeting with our enemies, in no-man's land. Far from wishing to attack, the Germans seemed inclined to make Christmas a quiet period, in which they could enjoy memories of home.
A truce was made, to end this terrible suffering, war and in-humanity. We shook hands, showed family photographs and exchanged small items such as food and tobacco. For the most part of the day, the German armies took advantage of the opportunity to repair and drain their trenches, and to bury their dead.
As with all good things, the truce must end. My captain Ian Stockwell of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, recalled how after a truly ‘Silent Night,’ he fired three shots into the air at 8.30 am on 26th December. The German officer who had agreed to the truce appeared at his battle line. They bowed, saluted and climbed back into their trenches. A few moments later, Stockwell heard the German fire two shots into the air, and said, ‘The war is on again.’ God bless us all.
Johnny (1896-1916)