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Heroes
Courage and Carnage
Today, it is almost impossible to imagine the naive idealism that greeted
the announcement of war in August, 1914. Most young men and women had a romantic
notion of war: brave young men in brightly-coloured uniforms marching – or
riding – into battle, brandishing swords on a brief and heroic quest for
honour and valour.
Many people believed the war would be a simple, short affair with few casualties
- “over by Christmas” was a sentiment echoed throughout Europe and
Canada. These popular ideas are understandable in the context of the time. There
had been no large scale war in Europe for a century and the memories of earlier
wars - the Franco-Prussian War and the Boer War - were of short, decisive battles
with few casualties.
It would not take long to dispel these ideas. Industrialization and mechanization
had forever changed the face of war. Machine |
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The
Knights of the Air
The pilots of the Great War became envied heroes - the knights of the air - for
their daring dog fights with German flying aces. Left to right: Maj. Raymond
Collishaw, Capt. A. T. Whealy. |
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