Reading 'Three days in June' about the 1982 Mt. Longdon battle (Excellent so far. Check it out.) It, and conversations with Falklands service mates & others that have engaged with Falkland veterans gets me thinking about the timescale of war/remembrance/story telling. WW2 was so massive that I imagine it'll ring somewhat longer, but those chaps on World at War holding forth down the pub were filmed c.30 years post-bellum. Falklands chaps seem to be emerging from the woodwork to tell the story of their war more fully since the 30th anniversary, with a wave building around the 40th. 30-40 years. Wondering if that's maybe a bit of a constant for blokes on the ground beginning to talk. Long enough for some demons to be sleeping a tad more. For irritation to build at others telling their story. To have attended mates' funerals who're now passing by entirely normal time flying, outside of traumatic effects. I think there's quite likely a natural timescale to this stuff. WW2 indeed so large a cataclysm it runs somewhat longer, but it's hard to deny the chaps that fought it are fading away. If WW1 any indicator, after they've gone, the centenary roughly hits, there's a peak of interest, intensified historical digging, revisionism (Good or bad, often good), and then maybe a tailing off of interest or 'new stuff'. WW2 is fully 100 years old on the second of September 2045. If the forum still stands then*, it'll be interesting for those still engaged to cover its rise or fall in the 'Interesting/important' history stakes. Trajan's column still probably bemuses most. The grave mounds of Towton & Cheriton are a minority interest. * Hello future WW2Talk people! I'm probably dead now (lifestyle) - look up Usernames marked in Purple, as they were there.
I think the Victorian/Edwardian fascination with Waterloo anniversary milestones and survivors and the later U.S. celebration of aged Civil War veterans about match your suggested timeline, too. Both of comparable cultural importance to those societies as the Second World War has been in the west.
Very interesting Adam I get contacted by some new members asking me stuff about an obscure thread I started stating grampa or a cousin 6 times removed was in x regiment and do I have more info etc. This type of query or interest will run for a while. Not sure how long this “while” will last. Hopefully with modern data being so accessible this will keep the interest going. Perhaps this will be the same for the Falklands war. I am aiming to be here in 2039 and 2045 but you never know
I feel the same way, but I do it for a living: I am an archaeologist In that respect I can't judge that objectively ;-)
Mr Reed holding a discussion of 'Post-Veteran remembrance' this Saturday at 7PM. https://twitter.com/sommecourt/status/1537306038881468417?s=20&t=_yui4ZD1aiVdD-TAofE-9Q
I am afraid that recent events have made the subject more relevant than ever. And that is not a happy thought.
I think exactly the opposite. Recent evens make me think what's the point in looking at a war from 80 years ago when one is going on in Europe right now.
Then you watch the Matt Lucas "Who do you think you are" and realise what the Allies fought for and the millions who were lost and maimed
History repeats itself because we fail to fully appreciate what our forbears endured because we have not been there. Only Servicemen who have been in battle can appreciate it. Thankfully I haven't. Reading books written by the elite Commanders is not the way to understand war. You have to read the letters of men who went through it many of whom died, because their stories have not been enhanced by experts. You then have to read about the politics that they portrayed and the conditions that they lived in comparing your notes to those of the relatives from home, If you have them. We are all individuals with our own views. Be they literal or figurative. For more, feel free to PM me but I am only me and not an answering machine. Your place in the queue is .............
I'm wondering if the Queen's passing will push WW2 further back into the shadows now one of the last and most well known links to the conflict has now passed away. Everyone knows of the Queen's service (and indeed her husband too) and all this week it had gnawed away at me that we have now lost one of the most public links to the war we all are obsessed with.
In relation to this Uncle, I think that the study of any facet of history requires study of the stories of all the individuals, be they Commanders or the soldiers themselves. I agree with you that History is about people but reading as wide a brief as possible helps to understand Histry better. The individual soldier will describe their immediate area and will probable offer excellent insights into personal history but whilst we will gain inside knowledge into the hand to hand combat around Cassino, the soldier's testimony will contain no information from a strategic perspective. Both sources are important, for differing reasons!
Really interesting thought, Ger. Not something that's easy to 'measure' as it'll take a while to come to any empirical conclusions about it, but I think you may have a point.
Will age ever weary the subject? YES. At school I was a sprinter. Not a fan of "The Loneliness of the Long-distance Runner." I can't quite understand how some of you guys can have spent nigh on 20 years on here. This could be my swan song. I have never smoked but this has become a habit that is difficult to give up. Not from the lack of trying.
Well looking at the new members list for today, we have 12 of them who have just joined the forum. I see that as good news and people are still interested in ww2. Uncle T I don't suppose you can possibly understand why some members have been on the forum for nearly 20 years if you are not passionate about ww2. I've been here constantly since 2011 (heck, doesn't time fly when one is having fun ) . Some people are passionate about collecting beer mats, we are all different and we are here to help others who need help along the way. Lesley
Not sure I understand you commenting about members spending nigh on 20 years here but you are allowed to because WW2 ensured much of the planet has free speech. It is called having an interest and a broad spectrum and liking of life. I would not call it a habit. Members here and I will include myself have helped numerous other members with their research and given advice on their next steps. Nearly al the members on here are like minded about WW2 and other historical things and eras. Plus lots of other strange and wonderful interests. Look at the barracks section The Barracks and you will learn a lot from that, of members other interests some very interesting and some very weird. New members join because one day their brain sprung into action. "oh I remember uncle John he was killed in the war I will google his name."They google and quite of lot of times their hits bang on the door of ww2talk because someone has taken a photo of uncle Johns headstone or uncle Johns regiment was mentioned etc etc Quite a few members here are very good at what they do and have written books and have excellent websites because they bothered to do things. "you come this way but once" make the most of it and take the anti grump pill stay around and even old dogs can learn new tricks
I think that interest in WW2 will continue for a long time yet. Some information is passed down through families, but if it isn't, it can spark curiosity from future generations, for instance if a relative has declined to talk about or record his/her wartime experiences. There is also a strong interest in family history research, and some researchers will go into immense detail, and yet others will just simply record facts or ask a question or two and that will be enough for them.