Death of a poilu

Only one World War 1 poilu is still with us following the death this weekend of Louis de Cazenave, who fought alongside Senegalese riflemen before being transferred to the artillery. He said that he never stopped thinking about the line of combat in the Vosges but never spoke about it.

"The war was a stupid, useless thing. What's the point of massacring people ? Nothing can justify that, nothing."

http://www.20minutes.fr/article/207362/France-Louis-de-Cazenave-est-mort.php

The WWI soldiers found themselves in the filthy, lousy, rat-infested trenches where they couldn't wash, let alone shave ! So they grew extravagant moustaches which they wore with pride and gained the nickname "les poilus" - the whiskery ones or the hairy ones.

Comments

Alan said…
Not to be confused with a "poids lourd" (pwahlu versus pwahloo).

a poilu is a WWI soldier.

a poids lourd is an articulated lorry

there is a little throaty gurgle at the end of the "poids lourd"
12:07 pm
Alan said…
Stew says :

The old feller was 110.

The last survivor is also 110.

And when he goes, I hope we still remember. I hope that just because the generation has passed away, the Great War and its remembrance will not also pass into dry history like Crimea or the Boer War

(well that's more or less what he says... :)
9:11 am
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