Our History.
Letters from Soldiers at War
8/28/1914
My dear mother,
Just a few lines to tell you of my current state. I am in the hospital, but no need to worry. I am recovering from a minor injury. I may not be returning home anytime soon. The weather here is rather rainy. I have heard of the stories as my comrades visit from time to time. The rain in the trenches is apparently a torture. The water is usually over their knees, and sometimes above their waists! There have been many other men who have come to this hospital needing treatment for their severe trench foot. Though the trenches provide some protection from the shelling, bullets are flying randomly.
Some of the fellow men here are sick simply from the stench that lingers there. Shallow graves contain rotting bodies of our friends and siblings in No Man’s Land. I have been told of the pests that roam the trenches. The grotesque smell attracts rodents and such. They say the rats are as big as cats! They tell me that the have to be careful because the rats have grown to a size where they look like moving bodies through the trenches! Lice swarm my classmates heads whenever they stop by. Some have shaved their heads to get rid of the itch.
These stories have been keeping me entertained in the time being. I am awfully tired. I will write to you again shortly. I will do my best to keep track of these stories to share with you.
Love Always,
Your son, Franz Kemmerich
6/25/1914
My lovely wife,
“How can it be that I must part from you?” (184). Though the time apart will be difficult, I will make sure to always provide for my fellow soldiers, as I do for you. I have not received my uniform yet, but my measurements have been recorded. We all have been given riffles and have been practicing our shots before arriving at the field. Some of the younger men already look pale to the face and haven’t even been in a battle yet! Remember to give the kids a warm hug from their father.
All my love,
Stanislaus
8/13/1916
Mother,
I don’t have much time to write to you now that the war has taken a bit longer than we first expected. Many of my classmates have been killed in battle. But, you get used to this, seeing that it happens everyday. Death is like sustaining a cold. “But a man gets used to that sort of thing in the army.” (268). No one was prepared for the substantial amount of loss here in the war. But, I wish the best fortune to the family at home. Take care of yourself, as I will continue to fight for your safety here on the front.
With love,
Paul Baumer
4/08/1918
Uma Tjaden,
I miss home so greatly. The battlefields that were once green prairies are now black, cold ground simply covered in dead men! It is a sight I believe with stick with me for the rest of my life. “A rumour is going around that there may be peace.” (201). It seems as if I will be home shortly. Oh, I am so excited to finally have some peace and quiet! The shells are rather overwhelming, if you ask me. I hope to have a feast when I return. Living in a world where food is no longer limited sounds much like a dream to me. Mother and Father should be so proud of their son. Maybe my classmates that are still alive with me will all find women and get married; tell the children of our stories from the war. I mustn’t start day dreaming yet. There is still a war to fight.
Be home soon,
Tjaden
German Soldiers from WWI
Even though soldiers in the trenches were allowed to send letters home, they were heavily censored by the Ministry of Defence before being sent. Specific details of where the soldiers were located were removed from letters. However, due to the censors, the notes sometimes were unreadable. Since families and loved ones of the soldiers liked to know where they were in the war, some of them came up with codes to hint at their general location. The people in charge of censoring the letters eventually grew aware of the codes and started to censor them too.
"Being away from you is breaking my heart." In this sentence, the "B" would stand for Belgium, which would be what some soldiers used to signal their stations.
