Cursed be war...
The anniversary of the end of the First World War is coming up. November 11, 1918. On that day, the armistice was signed at 5:15 a.m., marking the Allied victory and the total defeat of Germany.
In fact, the "ceasefire" took effect at 11:00 a.m., prompting peals of bells and ringing throughout France, announcing to the population the end of the war that left more than 8 million dead, disabled, and maimed.
As part of the commemorations that will mark the centenary of the 1914-1918 war until 2018, it would be interesting to look back to 1922. Why 1922? Because that year, four years after the armistice, the proposal to celebrate the date of the end of hostilities was an opportunity for the French to denounce the responsibility of imperialist Germany in the outbreak of this war. However, for many veterans, it would be futile to seek praise for the Army or an exaltation of French strength; the appeal to the League of Nations was welcomed, as was the emphasis placed on mourning and sacrifices, which must take on greater significance and serve as a lesson...
The refusal to make November 11 the occasion for a military demonstration was made explicit in various speeches, particularly at the Congress of the French Union in these terms:
"The November 11 celebration will not include any military demonstration. Throughout France, wreaths will be laid at the foot of war memorials by representatives of the Veterans' and Disabled Associations, assisted by representatives of the government and the Constituted Bodies."
Similarly, at the end of its article on how to celebrate the new national holiday, the disabled newspaper is specific:
"What matters ultimately is that the November 11th celebration be devoid of all military pageantry. No taking up arms, no reviews, no parade of troops. It is the celebration of Peace that we are celebrating. It is not the celebration of War. We want the living to be left entirely to the memory of an hour when they savored the admirable thought that they would henceforth be able to live for works of peace, for civil works."
But then, what about the flags, the bugles, the Marseillaises? Doesn't the conduct of the November 11th ceremonies betray these intentions? Isn't it a concession to militarism? “Absolutely not, if we agree to decipher these ceremonies as a set of articulated signs. The place of the manifestation, as the name indicates, is the war memorial. It is not an altar of the Fatherland, but a tomb. Some, it is true, display a triumphant infantryman, although the majority are simple steles, without glorious or cockade connotations. In any case, the monument plays the role of a tomb in the ceremony. This is striking in certain Catholic communities, where people went in “procession,” clergy at the head, from the church where the mass for the dead had just been said, to the monument where the priest gives absolution, while the choir sings the “De Profundis.” Everywhere, the monument is collectively decorated with flowers—often, each school child places a flower or a small bouquet there—the minute of silence that follows is a secularized form of prayer, and the roll call of the dead, is borrowed from the necrology of the Catholic liturgy, this is in line with the guidelines for funeral ceremonies.
On November 11th, in front of monuments, we do not celebrate the cult of the victorious Fatherland, but that of the dead. This is so true that patriotic songs are rare. Here and there, the "Marseillaise" is sung. It should also be emphasized that at that time, for that generation, this song was not annexed by political parties: it was the national anthem, that of the revolutionaries of 1789, that of the Republic. On November 11th, we do not celebrate nationalism in the face of foreigners, but the citizen who died for freedom, as confirmed by the meaning of the exchanges and the movements. The ceremony is not presided over by officials, but by the combatants who symbolically line up with their flags on the side of the monument, that is, on the side of the dead. The officials come and lay a wreath: it is they who move and show respect to the dead. To join in this tribute, the flags bow respectfully, as a sign of mourning. What is great is not the Fatherland, an abstract entity, but the citizens, whose names are engraved on the monument in alphabetical order, or in the chronological order of their death, but exceptionally in the military order of rank. How could we not look with our eyes today at these words expressed in conclusion, knowing what happened next in 39-45, Indochina, Algeria and today with these modern wars that destroy and shape all of humanity:
"If all the efstrong product and all the money spent...for war had been spent for Peace...? For social, industrial and economic progress? The fate of humanity would be very different. Poverty would be largely banished from the Universe, and the financial burdens that will weigh on future generations, instead of being odious and overwhelming, would on the contrary be beneficial burdens of universal happiness. Cursed be war and its perpetrators!
When we hear someone who did not fight say: "War is a calamity whose recurrence must be avoided at all costs," we have the feeling that the person making this observation cannot fully grasp its meaning. It seems to us that the wish he expresses can only be platonic. Let us dare to say today that, for the combatants of 1914-1918, war was "a terrible, desperate struggle against the earth, the earth that absorbs, engulfs, and drags people into a sticky, shifting mud, with thousands and thousands of invisible tentacles: the earth where we dug our shelter and our grave with the same stroke of a shovel; the earth in which we lived, in which we died, putting an end to unimaginable suffering; the earth, the mud made of our sweat, our tears, our blood almost as much as of the waters of the sky." For us, war is not the pain of others, the misery of others; it is "our" pain, "our" misery; for us, it is the reality of all atrocities."
Still with today's eyes, I invite you to appreciate the directives resulting from this "post-war" period in 1922, for the action that was to follow:
"The time is no longer for expedients, for piecemeal solutions. We must have the courage to think big and prepare a new order. The root cause of evil is in people's minds. The essential reform is that of the public spirit. We must: - Serve instead of serving ourselves. - Fulfill our duties before demanding our rights. - Place moral and spiritual values above material values. - Combat sectarianism in all its forms and wherever it comes from. - Rediscover the meaning of the family home. - Restore human dignity." - Have the courage to demand the rapid elimination of abuses, sinecures, and multiple positions. - Strike down corruption mercilessly, wherever it is found and however high the perpetrators may be. - Restore social order on its two natural foundations: Family and Profession. - Restore authority, provide it with sufficient stability, and free it from the intolerant tyranny of parties and groups, of the appetites and forces of money. - Ensure a strict separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary. - Avoid excessive taxes and inflation, which generate misery and ruin. - Simplify public accounting and eliminate unnecessary and costly administrative red tape.
Unfortunately, this speech could still be made today... With the hindsight of some 107 years, the results are eloquent, yes, truly: "Cursed be war and its perpetrators..."
Christian Morisot
