Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

German soldiers preserved in World War I shelter discovered after nearly 100 years
The Telegraph ^ | 2-10-12 | STAFF

Posted on 02/14/2012 5:49:12 AM PST by Mikey_1962

The men were part of a larger group of 34 who were buried alive when an Allied shell exploded above the tunnel in 1918 causing it to cave in. Thirteen bodies were recovered from the underground shelter but the remaining men had to be left under a mountain of mud as it was too dangerous to retrieve them. Nearly a century later French archaeologists stumbled upon the mass grave on the former Western Front during excavation work for a road building project. Many of the skeletal remains were found in the same positions the men had been in at the time of the collapse, prompting experts to liken the scene to Pompeii. A number of the soldiers were discovered sitting upright on a bench, one was lying in his bed and another was in the foetal position having been thrown down a flight of stairs. Related Articles 'World War One Pompeii' 10 Feb 2012 As well as the bodies, poignant personal effects such as boots, helmets, weapons, wine bottles, spectacles, wallets, pipes, cigarette cases and pocket books were also found. Even the skeleton of a goat was found, assumed to be a source of fresh milk for the soldiers. Archaeologists believe the items were so well preserved because hardly any air, water or lights had penetrated the trench. The 300ft long tunnel was located 18ft beneath the surface near the small town of Carspach in the Alsace region in France. Michael Landolt, the archaeologist leading the dig, said: "It's a bit like Pompeii. "Everything collapsed in seconds and is just the way it was at the time. "Here, as in Pompeii, we found the bodies as they were at the moment of their death. "Some of the men were found in sitting positions on a bench, others lying down.

(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government
KEYWORDS: ggg; godsgravesglyphs
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-33 next last
Did they find any picklebaums?

7:34am CST

1 posted on 02/14/2012 5:49:16 AM PST by Mikey_1962
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

Ghastly.


2 posted on 02/14/2012 5:58:57 AM PST by BenLurkin (This is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion or satire; or both)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

Pretty fascinating. They’ll probably never run out of buried World War I artifacts in France and Belgium given the magnitude of what went on there.


3 posted on 02/14/2012 6:03:06 AM PST by SpaceBar
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

Pickelhaube. Unless I missed a joke.

Unlikely. By 1918, the standard helmet was the stahlhelm - the German “coal scuttle.”

In any case, pickelhauben were usually made out of hard leather. They would have been in pretty bad shape after nearly a century in the dirt. Nothing would have been left except the furniture (brass).

Poor guys. Hope it was quick.


4 posted on 02/14/2012 6:11:30 AM PST by Little Ray (FOR the best Conservative in the Primary; AGAINST Obama in the General.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Little Ray

According to the article, even leather items were well preserved here. I don’t know how water was excluded from the site for a century but it apparently was.


5 posted on 02/14/2012 6:16:35 AM PST by skeeter
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

All really quiet on the western front.


6 posted on 02/14/2012 6:23:49 AM PST by TruthShallSetYouFree (How bad would an Obama II administration be, without the constraints of re-election?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

fascinating


7 posted on 02/14/2012 6:46:41 AM PST by svcw (Only difference between Romney & BH is one thinks he will be god & other one thinks he already is.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962
Even the skeleton of a goat was found, assumed to be a source of fresh milk for the soldiers.

Yeah! /sarc

8 posted on 02/14/2012 6:47:59 AM PST by Don Corleone ("Oil the gun..eat the cannoli. Take it to the Mattress.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Peanut Gallery

Ping


9 posted on 02/14/2012 6:51:52 AM PST by Professional Engineer (Never Again! Except for the next time.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

I guess this would be a German version of the Trench of Bayonets.


10 posted on 02/14/2012 7:05:36 AM PST by ops33 (Senior Master Sergeant, USAF (Retired))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: skeeter

Cool. Then, if there was a pickelhaube, it would be preserved. Still, its pretty unlikely.


11 posted on 02/14/2012 7:48:43 AM PST by Little Ray (FOR the best Conservative in the Primary; AGAINST Obama in the General.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962

Water would in some circumstances actually aid in preservation, especially if the burial was in mud. The fine mud seals out oxygen. Water itself can be deoxygenated, and then also acts like a sealant, keeping atmospheric oxygen away from the artifacts.
World War I was a total disaster, and never should have been allowed to happen. Britain especially had no excuse for getting involved. The result was that hundreds of thousands of young men were killed, and a generation depleted. The loss of morale effected every participating country. Good governments were destroyed, so that in their place socialist dictatorships could arise. More wars then followed. All this was unnecessary.
The leaders of those days were total fools to let this happen. And we see little sign that modern leaders are any smarter.


12 posted on 02/14/2012 7:49:13 AM PST by docbnj
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962
Im Westen nichts Neues
13 posted on 02/14/2012 7:51:20 AM PST by Savage Beast (Only a powerful intellect and internal moral compass can resist the incessant barrage of propaganda.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ops33
I guess this would be a German version of the Trench of Bayonets.

Yep....horrifying to even contemplate the hell these young men were going through when they met their demise:

See: Tranchée des Baïonnettes

14 posted on 02/14/2012 7:52:27 AM PST by DCBryan1 (Id rather have a man who wrecked his marriage as POTUS than a man who wrecked his country!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: docbnj
WAR IS MADNESS.

The true meaning of W. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is WAR: This is what WAR is.

No one even knew what the WAR was about. The two young people in the drama, caught in the tide of history, didn't care a whit what it was about. And the outcome--in Shakespeare's beautiful drama and in real life--is always tragic.

15 posted on 02/14/2012 7:58:14 AM PST by Savage Beast (Only a powerful intellect and internal moral compass can resist the incessant barrage of propaganda.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

GGG PING!


16 posted on 02/14/2012 8:02:58 AM PST by DCBryan1 (Id rather have a man who wrecked his marriage as POTUS than a man who wrecked his country!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: SpaceBar
They’ll probably never run out of buried World War I artifacts in France and Belgium given the magnitude of what went on there.

My sister visited France in the '70s and went out to Verdun. The farmers there were still plowing up duds and every year or so a couple got killed when they hit a live one.

17 posted on 02/14/2012 8:26:06 AM PST by Oatka (This is America. Assimilate or evaporate.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Little Ray
Pickelhaube. Unless I missed a joke.

Its a joke for a buddy who ALWAYS screws up the German language to a point that nobody knows what he is trying to say.

Ironically he is working in Germany now, and lurks in FR on a regular basis.

God help the engineers at TRW in Germany.

18 posted on 02/14/2012 8:30:37 AM PST by Mikey_1962 (Obama: The Affirmative Action President.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Mikey_1962
A WWI documentary, Digging up the Trenches, was aired a few years ago and still pops up from time to time on cable.
Excellent show and can be seen here on Utube.
19 posted on 02/14/2012 8:37:29 AM PST by oh8eleven (RVN '67-'68)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

What is the difference between these guys and Oetzi the Iceman? Is it because we don’t know their names that we give them a proper Christian burial and we stick Oetzi in a padlocked freezer?


20 posted on 02/14/2012 10:59:07 AM PST by Sawdring
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-33 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson