Reddit reviews Poilu: The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker, 1914-1918

Of course! Though, disappointingly my French collection is not up to snuff with the rest of my collection, as I primarily reenact a Prussian Riflemen of the Imperial German forces, but I've got some odds and ends.

The pride and joy would be my M1915 Adrian helmet, with original paint still in tact as well as the army badge on the front. The liner had long ago rotted out, so I had a great friend of mine who specializes (and is his sole income) in refurbishing original helmets from The Great War through to The Korean War. I have an affinity for head wear, especially steel helmets, to which I have a Belgium, Russian, Serbian, and even Polish variation of the French Adrian helmet!

I have a French Lebel M1886 rifle, dated 1905, which definitely saw some use in the war. Which, believe it or not is still pretty fun to take out and shoot, ammo isn't too hard to find for it (8mm Lebel, incidentally the first smokeless powder cartridge ever developed and adopted by a nation). Kept clean and lubricated I haven't had any foul ups or breakages. Along with the rifle, came the infamous "Rosalie" bayonet-- a blade of 20 inches or so long, also dated 1905.

Other than that, I have a pipe that was from a collection of some personal effects as well as some trench art on an artillery shell that came from an estate sale many, many years ago.

I do have the Horizon Blue greatcoat, literally just to wear when it gets very cold or I'm up in the mountains someplace because I think it looks awesome. It is however a reproduction that was made when a member of the club sourced some bolts of original fabric while he was in France visiting family. Decent amount of providence!

If you have not yet already read it, you should do yourself a favor and obtain the book "Poilu: The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker" by Louis Barthas. It is hands down one of the best personal accounts of the Great War, and specifically of the French trials and tribulations, the man was in the war from nearly the beginning, through to the end and all the horrible battles the French fought in, 9/10 he was there. Fascinating, horrifying, unbelievably nerve-racking primary sources and documentation of the war from a conscripts point of view.

I could go on, and on, and on, and on... I love this stuff, and the Great War especially is a fascination, hell, an obsession of mine. Enjoy!

> opposing sides over Christmas.

That happened once, only in 1914, sporadically in 1915 and completely forgotten by 1916 with the Somme/Verdun & use of poison gas erasing any sense of civility.

>Can't let humanity get in the way of your war!

I've read a first account book, Poilu: The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker, 1914-1918, that describes a lot of "live & let live" moments on the Western Front. For instance, heavy raining causing the trenches to flood & both sides realize they need to get the hell out of there, but can't shoot at each other because they're in the same situation. So they just sort of stood out of their trenches, shrugged at each other & retreated.

However, the author describes what we know now as false propaganda. He describes the Germans consistently using "explosive bullets" & "reversed bullets" which we know now is entirely false: but shows how such rumors existed & were encouraged in order to spark a greater hatred. (While such things existed "explosive bullets" were early tracer rounds, mostly used to take out balloons & "reversed bullets" were early anti-tank rounds: precursors to the K-Bullet.)

The Barthas book is also interesting, because he's in his 30's when the War breaks out, and he's was a Socialist. A lot of his writing comes from a "I'm too old for this shit" & writes from a very socialist perspective of the war.

Louis Barthas' account (a French conscript, also on the social-democratic left if I recall correctly) is pretty popular. http://www.amazon.com/Poilu-Notebooks-Corporal-Barrelmaker-1914-1918/dp/0300212488

I always found WWI to be highly interesting, so I've devoured my fair share of literature. I'll list a few of my favorites. All of these are biographical non-fiction books.

Poilu! - The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker, 1914-1918.

This guy lived through the entire war, spending most of it at the front. It details their daily life, but also the poor leadership and his hatred for the war. This one changed my perspective on war itself. A great read! If you're only picking up one, get this one.

Somme Mud - Edward P.F Lynch

Australian private lives through the fighting at Somme Mud, somehow. This one is very captivating, and I might have to re-read it.

Storm of Steel - Ernst Junger

A German account of the war, most of it spent at the front. Apparently there's a 1929 version in which Junger's patriotism and nationalism is conveyed, so I might want to try to get a hold of this edition myself. The newer edition is still a great read.

Sniper on the Eastern Front - Josef "Sepp" Allerberger

Another German account, but this one stands out because of it's focus on the snipers of the war.


These are all I can think of at the moment. I hope I've been able to spark some interest in the subject! If these do not ticke your fancy, there are tons of books covering different aspects of the war. All Quiet on the Western Front is fictional, but still a great read.

To anyone who really wants a true and visceral account of some of the worst fighting of the First World War, I highly recommend getting a copy of Louis’ Barthas’ Poilu: The Wartime Diaries of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker 1914-1918 . Barthas as French army infantry, served in Verdun, at the Somme and in many other famed locations and lived to tell the tale of the lowly foot soldier*.

A shorter read: Battle of Verdun

Fort de Vaux is one of my favorite maps, and the story of the actual fighting that occurred within is even more stellar. Forts Vaux and Douamount weathered an intense assault, and showed men at the very limit of their ability. It’s an enthralling read, and exemplifies the true brutality of the first mechanized war.

>Had his wisdom and that of numerous war resisters in the U.S. prevailed, the U.S. would not have entered W.W. I. The author of War Against War, Michael Kazin, conjectures about how W.W. I would have ended if the U.S. had not intervened. “The carnage might have continued for another year or two,” Kazin writes, “until citizens in the warring nations, who were already protesting the endless sacrifices required, forced their leaders to reach a settlement. If the Allies, led by France and Britain, had not won a total victory, there would have been no punitive peace treaty like that completed at Versailles, no stab-in-the back allegations by resentful Germans, and thus no rise, much less triumph, of Hitler and the Nazis. The next world war, with its 50 million deaths, would probably not have occurred.”

This kind of conjecture really irks me. Anti-semitism was widespread in Europe at this time, even if the outcome had been the opposite you'd just as likely see a Naziesque movement in France (see the Dreyfus Affair). The only way to prevent a stab in the back legend would have been a complete destruction of either losing side, which of course happened to Germany in WW2.

For an account of a pacifist, socialist Christian involved in WW1 I'd recommend reading Poilu: The World War I Notebooks of Corporal Louis Barthas, Barrelmaker, 1914-1918. Particularly interesting are parts where the author tells a fellow soldier to wait to see what a German approaching their trench is up to, lest any needless aggression trigger a violent response, or where he draws his Lebel rifle on a murderous officer wanting to makes an example of a careless artilleryman.

Since I haven’t seen anyone recommend it: Poilu by Corporal Louis Barthas it only got translated to English somewhat recently. Basically a series of notebooks from a French corporal who fought through most of the war. I haven’t read it yet but I mean to.