The 100th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War deserves to be marked in many ways. Centeneries don't come around very often and when they do they're usually worth a second thought.
But what should commemorations of the first conflict that took on global proportions and slaughtered millions of men look like? Do we need big official ceremonies or small localized initiatives? Should we look at the winners or the losers?
Arguably it was the Great War which crystallized the modern concept of the nation. The idea that your only loyalty should be to your nation, and that other nations may be well and good, but they are no match for yours.
So it is no surprise then that the commemorations this year will have a distinctly national touch. Britain, France and Germany will all go their own way about doing it.
Meanwhile, the European Union has avoided organizing anything at all.
A spokesman for the Commission told news source Euractiv that this is because "... 2014 means very
different things to different countries but... the
President and Commissioners may attend specific events, if invited.”
It is sad that 100 years after the first major modern conflagration in Europe there can be no common drive to understand this history and learn from it.
Further reading:
Historian Richard J Evans looks at compelling parallels between 1914 and today
Journalist Simon Jenkins laments the glorification of the war in Britain
Further reading:
Historian Richard J Evans looks at compelling parallels between 1914 and today
Journalist Simon Jenkins laments the glorification of the war in Britain
