The patriots who fell in the Great War did not join this fight to see yet another empire trying to take a hold of Europe

By Janice Atkinson 9 November 2018



Cemetery and memorials in Verdun, France - Image: Vytautas Kielaitis / shutterstock.com

This Saturday I will be in Verdun, alongside Marine Le Pen and colleagues from the Europe of Nations and Freedom, to commemorate those who have fallen in the Great War.
The Battle of Verdun will forever be part of the French national consciousness, as it was at this strategic site that French soldiers bravely held their ground against the German onslaught.



French soldiers crawling through their own barbed wire entanglements – Image: Everett Historical / shutterstock.com

Verdun was the longest battle one of the Great War and it was also one of the bloodiest, killing over 300,000 combatants and injuring many more between February and December 1916. Verdun thus symbolises the horrors of the Great War, producing a carnage and human suffering on an industrial scale never seen before.

But, above all, it epitomises the valour of the French army and its soldiers as they bravely rushed in defence of their nation. Risking German breakthrough, General Nivelle rallied his troops with the battle cry: “Vous ne les laisserez pas passer, mes camarades! (You will not let them pass, my comrades) The French army indeed stood its ground, with hundreds of thousands soldiers making the ultimate sacrifice in defence of France.
The first day of the Allied offensive marked the bloodiest day recorded in British military history, as more than nineteen thousand British and Commonwealth soldiers lost their lives in a single day
In other sectors to the West of Verdun, the British Expeditionary Force had rushed to France’s aide. Great Britain had joined the war two years prior as it was dedicated to the Triple Entente, the Alliance set up protect Europe from Germany´s imperialistic schemes.
In part to divert German attention and relieve the pressure on Verdun, the battle of the Somme was launched. Here French and British troops fought shoulder to shoulder in what turned out to be the bloodiest battle of the War. More than a million men perished here in the trenches.



British World War 1 soldiers in a front Line trench. 1915-18 / Everett Historical / shutterstock.com

The first day of the Allied offensive marked the bloodiest day recorded in British military history, as more than nineteen thousand British and Commonwealth soldiers lost their lives in a single day.
When the guns finally went silent on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, France counted more than 6 million casualties (dead, wounded or missing); the Commonwealth 3 million; the United States 364,000; Belgium 93,000, and millions of others, including civilians had perished.
The total number of casualties on the side of the central powers numbered more than 15 million. In the years after the Great War over 2,400 Commonwealth cemeteries were constructed in France and Belgium alone in order to lay to rest thousands of soldiers.
This commemoration, precisely one hundred years following the armistice signed at Compiègne, is to honour all brave men who fought for their nations and to whom we owe our freedom. I was hence shocked to see this week the French president Macron shamefully attempting to exploit the gravity of this commemoration for petty political gains.
We owe it to these brave men to keep alight the flame of freedom that they have passed on to us
He decided that touring the various battle sites would also be an opportunity to get outside the Elysee Palace to pretend how well connected he is with the common people. Being in the presence of Chancellor Merkel, he refused to commemorate the Allied military victory, afraid, as he was to offend the German Chancellor.
Worse still is his attempt rewrite history, thereby joining the chorus of EU bureaucrats, who single out nationalism as the cause of conflicts in Europe. Back in 2013 Barosso had already claimed that rolling back EU integration would mean going back to a “Europe of war and the trenches.” To which Macron recently added: “We are living in a Europe fractured by the rise of nationalism. We are in need of a stronger Europe, to not let history repeat itself.”
The real danger facing Europe today is not the existence of nationalism, but of EU federalists attempting to build an empire yet again
To claim that nationalism is to blame for war in Europe is not only historically inaccurate; it is an insult to those who have sacrificed themselves. Those men fighting in the Great War were patriots who in fact fought for their nation in defence of freedom and against imperial aggression.

It was first and foremost imperialism, not nationalism that spurred aggression against neighbouring countries. By the same token, it was empires of various forms that for centuries had violently suppressed nations across Europe. This is why directly after WWI, based on the principle of self-determination, these empires were torn down, allowing European nations to re-emerge.
The real lesson to be drawn from the Great War is the danger of imperialism, as its purpose is to curbing national independence. Macron and other EU federalists are using arguments that are not only false, but outright dangerous. Suppressing national independence, in an attempt to satisfy the EU´s federal ambitions risks repeating the dark chapters of European history.
The struggle for countries in Europe to retain their freedom and national independence will endure
The real danger facing Europe today is not the existence of nationalism, but of EU federalists attempting to build an empire yet again, to the expense of the freedom and independence of Europe’s nations. EU federalism is pushing the continent closer to the brink than ever before.
Part of that is the dangerous notion of an EU army. Macron said this week the army was needed to fight against our enemies – and he included the United States in that. I will not be rude to my friends in France this week, because, after all, it is their President, but the man is a deranged disgrace if he thinks calling the United States an enemy, particularly in this remembrance week.
During the Great War as well as WWII, the Allies stood firmly united against foreign aggressors in Europe. The hundreds of thousands of British soldiers that died fighting on European soil bear testament to British committed to freedom.
We owe it to these brave men to keep alight the flame of freedom that they have passed on to us
The main threat to Europe this time around is not foreign military occupation but a gradual erosion of national sovereignty and independence sprouting from the EU´s federal ambitions.

Aware of this danger the British people have wisely voted for Brexit, as they want to continue to live as a free nation. And yet although we are leaving the EU 29th of March next year this does not imply we are now turning our back from Europe.

The struggle for countries in Europe to retain their freedom and national independence will endure and during this endeavour, France and nations across Europe will continue to find in the United Kingdom a loyal ally.



We should never forget that the patriots who fell in the Great War did not join this fight to see yet another empire trying to take a hold of Europe. They fought and died for our nations, allowing us to live in freedom.

As the few remaining veterans of WW2 decline, the question is asked, “should we discontinue Armistace Day?”. Never. We owe it to these brave men to keep alight the flame of freedom that they have passed on to us.

As the sun goes down, we will remember them.


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