Stories of the Forgotten Heroes

Preface

Most of us may be familiar with the First World War from family stories, antiquated photos, or a lone medal carefully kept on display in our grandparents' house. Others have studied it either independently or as part of the school curriculum and found a lasting passion for the conflict which not only shaped Europe but also. No matter your background, I am certain that even though this is a work of fiction it still holds, to a certain degree, an educational value. These pages are inspired by the unknown soldiers who took part in the great battles in what was the first "World War".

From a personal point of view, it can be said, with much confidence, I assure you, that as I grew up, I became even more invested in the Great War or the First World War as it is known to the modern audience due to the stories of my great-great-grandfather which had been a field medic in it. He died in 1916, a few days after the Battle of Marasesti ended, due to the typhus epidemic which struck the troops extremely badly. As a young adult, I observed with incredulity how different was the commemoration in the West as opposed to the East. Throughout the United Kingdom, France and Germany ceremonies and symbolic gestures were made to show their understanding and the terrible effects of the war. Nonesuch act was in my home country of Romania or the Russian Federation. Understandably, the Russian people might be reticent to commemorate a war that destroyed a 600-year regime and plunged the country from a global war into another gruesome conflict in the form of a civil war, only for them to have communism imposed. But in Romania, as one of the victors of the war, the war had a different "value"; it was through it that the dream of a united country came to be whole. Which makes the situation even more perplexing. The lack of commemorative actions can be narrowed down to one simple fact: ignorance. For some politicians this conflagration is foreign and they fail in understanding that this conflict represents one of the deadliest ones that humankind has gone through in the last centuries, and set the stage for another, which would bring a different kind of horror. We should also remember that it is also filled with acts of selflessness and bravery from young men who were taken from their loved ones too young to fully understand the gravity of their decisions. My ancestor tried as hard as he could to help Romanian and German soldiers alike in what must have been an apocalyptic landscape since to him the Hippocratic Oath was at the core of his duties. But he succumbed to the illness. He was survived by his wife and their three daughters who I am sure, always felt like a part of them was missing. I can state with absolute certainty that from the perspective of the modern observer that history has the unfortunate tendency to repeat itself, mainly since we forget it, using what is by now a well-known mantra: "Such a thing can't happen to me". It isn't so, unfortunately.

But how did the Great War come to be? Or to put it differently, could it have been averted? Please bear with me as we'll see if there is an answer. The scene had been set a couple of years prior, but some at the time believed that it had been the hubris of the XIXth century that led to the start of the conflagration. When the European states returned to their old ways and borders after the Napoleonic Wars, with the Austrians especially determined to keep a status quo and if possible, expand their influence on the continent, it was merely wishful thinking that new nations would not arise. Nationalism in its first phase, before it was polluted by the political doctrines of the first half of the XXth century, united ethnicities in their struggle to have a state. The Germans, Romanians, Bulgarians, Italians, and Serbs gained their independence or unified into a single state in the latter half of the XIXth century.Empires such as Czarist Russia, Austria- Hungary and the Ottoman Empire held the somewhat childish belief they could keep in servitude their subjects. They were not only wrong but the Austrians especially brought about the catalyst which came in the form of a young Serb from Bosnia that felt the region should have never been Austria's in the first place.Old Europe was shocked, and rightly so, when the news came about the assassination of the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife during their state visit to the province of Bosnia at the hands of a politically aware Serb by the name of Gavrilo Princip. At first glance, the conflagration looks as if it began spontaneously but that couldn't be farther from the truth.In the preceding decades France, humiliated in the Franco-Prussian War, spearheaded the creation of the Entente along with Czarist Russia which saw the threat posed by Imperial Germany for their interests in the region. Pan-Slavism and Revanchism respectively, were the engines fueling domestic but more importantly, foreign affairs. The French Republic erected thousands of monuments, in the aftermath, representing the loss of Alsace-Lorraine in the most dramatic terms. For the French public, it was their sacred duty to make the country whole. In the East, Russia still held the ambitions of a great power although the tremendous losses in the Russo-Japanese War and the subsequent turmoil were indicators enough that the country could not withstand a long war. Moreover, their policies of interfering in the politics of other Slavic nations by using religion and a supposedly shared culture increased the threat of escalation during a crisis. The British Empire, rulers of the waves, and a constitutional monarchy decided that mediation was a far better solution to European problems, fearing an entanglement similar to the Napoleonic Wars but signing treaties without formally entering the alliance. At the same time, Imperial Germany, united with one of the most professional armies on the continent emerges as one of the potential leaders on the European stage which in only a short time can dominate continental affairs. They acquire colonies in Africa and the Pacific and begin creating a navy that would rival the British. The German economy is also experiencing an unprecedented boost which in turn creates even more friction with Britain and the United States especially. Moreover, in response to the creation of the Entente Cordiale, Germany founds the Central Powers with Austria-Hungary which they consider a sister state due to their shared history and culture. The Kingdom of Italy will be joining it initially, followed by the Kingdom of Romania under the leadership of King Carol I, and lastly, the Ottoman Empire.The Serb nationalist is arrested but Austria- Hungary sends an impossible ultimatum to the Serbian Kingdom. To accept the terms would mean surrendering their sovereignty which is unacceptable. A state of war between the two nations leads Czarist Russia to mobilize and declare war. In response, the German Empire honors the alliance with Austria-Hungary, which in turn led to the French entry into the conflict.The Italians and the Romanians opt for neutrality whilst the Ottoman Empire joins the Central Powers to reverse the impending death of their state. The British Empire is still waiting but when the Germans occupied Belgium, a neutral country guaranteed by Britain, the War becomes truly global.France will manage to woo Romania and Italy to join the Entente in exchange for promises of national unity at the expense of Austria-Hungary. The Romanian majority in Transylvania and Bukovina which had been oppressed by the Austro-Hungarians for centuries saluted the entry of the kingdom into the Entente. Romania's southern neighbor Bulgaria wished to expand their borders at the expense of the Serbs and Romanians joining the Central Powers. The rivalry which began during the Second Balkan War would have catastrophic consequences for post-war Bulgaria. Probably the most reluctant of the belligerents, the Kingdom of Greece joined the Entente due to Franco-British military pressure rather than political motives. In a short time span though, they will revert to an idea of national unity, Megali Greece, based on historical and ethnic borders.The war reached Africa since the German colonies of South-West Africa and German East Africa fought to the bitter end led by Lettow- Vorbeck, and surrendered after the German Empire did.In the Far East, Japan will gladly join the Entente sensing the opportunity of expanding its territory. The German colonies in the Pacific will fall after relatively quick sieges to the Japanese forces.The United States after careful deliberation and painstaking compromises join the Entente, which by the time they entered had become known in the press as the Allies. In terms of army morale, they represented the reason why the German Empire opted for an armistice.

On the 11th of November 1918, at the 11th hour, the First World War concluded with the Armistice signed at Compiegne. The subsequent treaties, the most famous of them being the one at Versailles brought more problems for the victors but also for the defeated. Economies were flattened and few could afford the costs of life be it in the camp of the Allies or that of the Central Powers. The number of military casualties was also horrendous and for the majority of the cases, the number of victims had been disproportionate to the military values of the operations undertaken. Today, we remember the sacrifice of those brave soldiers each 11th of November by laying a wreath on monuments or lighting a candle in their memory. The Great War was peculiar in its way; a web of interests, aspirations, and hopes intersected with one another. A stage for tragedy. This work is for them, and wherever they are I hope they look at us and secretly guide us towards creating a better tomorrow. Their sacrifice might be forgotten in time, but I feel that we'll keep continuing to discuss it. This is at least, my opinion, for the foreseeable future.