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Are there any examples of WW1 veterans who overall spoke very positively of their time in “The Great War?” (self.AskHistorians)
submitted 4h ago by DolceEtDecorumWest
We often hear that World War 1 was absolute hell for anyone even close to the front lines, from the rampant disease, to the unthinkable civilian deaths, to the revolutionary destruction that came with the introduction of the machine gun and then-highly advanced artillery weapons to war, to the ensuing cases of "Shell Shock," later to be recognized as a form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): but are there any records of soldiers who actually liked being there in the trenches, or came back from their experience with an appreciation or positive impression of war as a whole?
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AlamutJones 34 points 2h ago
Ernst Junger’s memoir **Storm of Steel** might fit your bill. He served as an infantry platoon commander and stormtrooper from 1915 to 1918.

Junger doesn’t shy away from the horrors of trench warfare in any way, but he frequently seems to find deep meaning or profound value in the experience, and even occasionally beauty. To quote him

​

>Hardened as scarcely another generation ever was in fire and flame, we could go into life as though from the anvil; into friendship, love, politics, professions, into all that destiny had in store. It is not every generation that is so favoured…

​

>We stood with our feet in mud and blood, yet our faces were turned to things of exalted worth…

​

>As the storm raged around us, I walked up and down my sector. The men had fixed bayonets. They stood stony and motionless, rifle in hand, on the front edge of the dip, gazing into the field. Now and then, by the light of a flare, I saw steel helmet by steel helmet, blade by glinting blade, and I was overcome by a feeling of invulnerability. We might be crushed, but surely we could not be conquered…

​

His wartime experiences cost him dearly. He was wounded in action no less than 14 times - seven of them serious, five of them bullet wounds - and was awarded some of the highest combat decorations the German state at the time could offer. He had an almost unceasingly brutal war…but at no point in his life did he ever say he wished he hadn’t gone.
poncicle 9 points 1h ago
I don't have the time nor the energy to summize Adrian Carton de Wiarts life in a manner that would be on par with the standards of this sub, so i hope throwing his name about in a subcomment will be allowed as he's a fascinating character and winston churchill himself formulated the foreword to his biography. He was the guy that "quite frankly [I] enjoyed the war" despite being severly injured numerous times
AlamutJones 5 points 1h ago
Oh, he’s fascinating. Arguably a complete lunatic, but fascinating
SequinSaturn 2 points 46m ago
I too came to say Ernst Junger
Dent7777 2 points 53m ago
The Great War was the great turning point in Harry Truman's life, finding that not only could he be a leader of men, but that he exalted in leadership. While he did talk about the terrible conditions he had seen, he also wrote about the beautiful countryside and lodging he occupied while rotating off the front. He managed to keep all the men under his direct control alive, and his experience in the war propelled him into politics later in his life.

I would say that he may qualify.
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