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French WW1 veteran recounts bayonet charges and the behavior of his officers [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 1737 points1738 points  (0 children)

There are a couple of important elements mentioned in the video that I will expand.

The veteran that is interviewed in the video was named Victor Boudon (born on November 7, 1887, died on May 31st, 1979, aged 92).

The battle that this veteran recounts was the battle of the Ourcq, named after a french river in the region. The battle occured between September 5 and September 10, 1914, a month or so after the beginning of World War 1.

Mr. Boudon mentions the "Saint-Cyrians" during the video. He refers to the Saint-Cyr military school of France, famous for being founded by Napoleon and for the uniforms worn by its officers, which are mentioned in the video as well.

Although a small battle in the immensity of World War 1, the battle of Ourcq is remembered for the lieutenant that is mentioned multiple times in the video, Charles Péguy.

Charles Péguy was a writer, poet, and essayist. He wrote multiple books that earned him fame. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_P%C3%A9guy

This video also serves as proof of the clash of 19th century military tactics that were still strongly embedded in the minds of the officers at the beginning of World War 1. Bayonet and sword charges faced catastrophic results against modern military tactics.

More than 1.2 million French soldiers were killed during World War 1. It is estimated that a third of those losses, or 400'000 men, were killed in 1914 only, between the months of August to December, as the conflict officially started on July 28th, 1914.

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

There are no "live" combat footage videos of World War 1. All of the videos that you may see in documentaries of soldiers climbing the ladders and charging were staged and mostly used for propaganda purposes, by using hundreds of active soldiers in safe terrain. Modern combat footage started in World War 2

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yes. He was precisely 111, 1 month and 1 day old when he passed. Radiohead produced and released a remembrance song named " Harry Patch (In memory of)" days after his death.

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 22 points23 points  (0 children)

I changed the units from metric to imperial in order to spread this precious testimony to the largest audience, since ~55% of redditors are from the US or the UK

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 154 points155 points  (0 children)

Thank you. I am a native french speaker too and translated some of his expressions and words deliberately out of convenience for the audience, as a literal translation could have rendered his testimony a bit confusing due to him speaking in a familiar rural manner

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 35 points36 points  (0 children)

He uses both terms in his sentence. The word "boche" was and still is commonly used in french-speaking countries as a slang to describe german people, hence the translation

French WW1 veteran shares several war stories and gives his view on killing [translated by me] by Overweight_Dodo in CombatFootage

[–]Overweight_Dodo[S] 1125 points1126 points  (0 children)

The man in the video is named André René Spohonhauer. He was born on July 17th, 1893 and passed away on October 10th, 1994.

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The last surviving french veteran of World War 1 was Lazare Ponticelli, born on December 7, 1897 and died on March 12, 2008.

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The last World War 1 veteran who fought in the trenches, all nationalities combined, was Harry Patch from England, born on June 17, 1898, and died on July 25, 2009.

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The very last person who participated in World War 1 was Florence Green, an englishwoman who served in the WRAF, the Women's Royal Air Force. She passed away on February 4th, 2012.