BERLIN — About 6,000 history buffs have reenacted the Battle of Nations in Leipzig to mark the 200th anniversary of the largest battle in Europe before World War I.
The German news agency Dpa reported that about 30,000 onlookers watched participants from 24 countries dressed up in early 19th century military costumes as they reenacted combat situations between infantrymen, cavalrymen, and artillery units.
The original battle involved about 500,000 soldiers and pitted the coalition armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria, Sweden, and England against the French army outside of Leipzig in 1813.
It ended in a defeat of the French army, which sealed the end of Napoleon’s hegemony over Europe. About 90,000 people died on the battlefields outside of Leipzig.
An ecumenical service was held in the town of Roetha on Saturday to mark the 200th anniversary of the battle. Some religious leaders oppose the reenactment because they believe it turns the event into a game and glorifies war.
Martin Schulz, president of the European Parliament, gave a speech last week at a memorial service commemorating the battle. He warned against a resurgence of nationalism on the continent.
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"WWII reenactment explores the theater of war" by Don Aucoin | Globe Staff, October 15, 2013
STOW — Welcome back to World War II — the war we can’t seem to get enough of — and to the world of historical reenactments, which just might be one of the hottest forms of theater around....
It's theater.
These amateur theatricals could teach the professional companies a thing or two about stagecraft, narrative momentum, and creating a sense of high-stakes urgency. But battle reenactments inevitably raise nagging questions about the repackaging of war as entertainment. (Questions, by the way, that the movie industry has blithely ignored for decades.)
Who cares what the movie industry did for decades?
It’s true that the Collings Foundation, a nonprofit educational foundation that organized the World War II battle reenactments on its grounds over the weekend, was conscientious about framing them as history lessons. During his narration of the “Battle for the Airfield,’’ founder Robert F. Collings took pains to emphasize the horrors of World War II.
“War is terrible,’’ he said at the end of the Sunday morning battle, speaking over a public-address system. “We do not want to have any future wars.’’
Yeah, well, the people that ordered you there do.
But it was also clear that some spectators were there simply for the bang-bang, like the young man who rushed past me, pumping his fist and shouting “Yeah!’’ as the battle raged, or the other twentysomething guy who gushed “That was cool!’’ after the battle.
Then why hasn't he enlisted?
A seminar on the origins, strategy, and tactics of World War II would not have attracted the hordes of spectators, including many families, who attended the reenactments here on Saturday and Sunday.
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Those qualms aside, it’s worth examining what these reenactments do well in purely theatrical terms. Here’s one thing that leaped out at me: how assiduously the World War II reenactors made the audience feel as if they had a stake in the proceedings.
Theater artists talk a lot about getting audiences invested in the work and about dissolving the “fourth wall’’ between performers and the people in the seats. By those standards, the “Battle for the Airfield’’ reenactment walked the walk. Spectators were invited “backstage,’’ as it were, allowed to roam freely through the encampments, Allied and German. We got an up-close look at what were, in effect, the sets and the props.
Is it just me or is this whole attitude sickening?
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To be sure, this could lead to moments of cognitive dissonance, as when I found myself in conversation Sunday morning in the German camp with John Mick and Arnie Boyer, a couple of amiable fellows who were wearing the black uniforms of the Waffen SS. “We won yesterday,’’ said Mick, 57, of Old Bridge, N.J. “Today we die a horrible death.’’ (The outcome of the battles was different, depending on the day.)
When it came to the performance itself, the reenactment was a clash of men and metal that landed with visceral impact. Its presentation was a model of precision, clarity, dramatic compression, and skillful blocking. When two German officers raced by on horseback, or when jeeps, troop carriers, tanks, and other armored vehicles criss-crossed the field, guns blazing, the action was clearly visible to the entire crowd.
Inevitably, the acting was broadly exaggerated, with individual performances consisting of not much more than shooting (blanks), running, yelling, and falling on the battlefield. But the reenactors managed to triumph in one area where professional actors consistently fail. The hand-to-hand combat was quite convincing, a far cry from most fights onstage, where the onset of fisticuffs almost always results in the collapse of verisimilitude. Once they broke through the German defenses, the Allied soldiers exhibited considerable ferocity as they simulated the pummeling of the enemy with their rifle butts.
Related: Eisenhower's Holocaust
They gonna reenact that?
Start to finish, the battle lasted about 20 minutes. I’ll be honest: With review deadlines looming and onstage action languishing inside Boston theaters, many’s the time I’ve longed for that kind of brevity.
Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.... ha.
After the smoke had cleared from the battlefield and the reenactors slain in combat had gotten back on their feet, I spoke with Rich Logan, 51, of Southbridge.
Makes it sound more like a video game.
Here’s hoping he was expressing the majority view when it came to the many parents in attendance with their kids. Nodding toward his young son, Logan said: “They play all these games all the time — you click on a mouse and people drop dead — but they have no idea of the reality. I’m hoping that by taking him to something like this, he’ll see that the reality isn’t as clean as the games.’’
Wow. I've failed.
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"30 nations plan WWI centennial" by Greg Keller | Associated Press, October 18, 2013
PARIS — 8.5 million soldiers perished in the 1914-18 war.
All so he war profiteers could test their new toys.
All so he war profiteers could test their new toys.
France, where the majority of Western Front fighting took place, is taking a leading role in the preparations.
Senior officials from countries including the United States, Britain, and Australia gathered Thursday under the Arc de Triomphe for a ceremonial relighting of the eternal flame that marks the tomb of France’s unknown soldier.
Meetings continue Friday under the golden dome of the 17th-century Invalides monument, led by French veterans’ affairs minister, Kader Arif.
President Francois Hollande is expected to unveil details of the events Nov. 8.
The Australian minister for veterans’ affairs, Michael Ronaldson, said it was key that participants ‘‘start defining where we all want each other to be . . . We’ll be talking about those key events that everyone wants to commemorate.’’
Well, not everyone.
Well, not everyone.
Today's wars:
France declares victory over extremists in Mali
But they ain't leaving!
Bastille Day Parade Marred by Militarism
But they ain't leaving!
Bastille Day Parade Marred by Militarism
