Just how much of the myth is true is open to conjecture, but enough testimonies corroborate the fact that several impromptu kickabouts happened along the front line in 1914. There are several books covering this subject naturally, but I’ve picked out some of the best here.
The definitive look at the subject to my mind is that of Pehr Thermaenius in The Christmas Match: Football in No Man’s Land 1914. Thermaenius attempts to shine a light on the truth behind those myths by telling the tale through the experiences of two of those involved; a Scotsman professional footballer named Jimmy Coyle, and a German amateur player named Albert Schmidt. Unlike most other books looking at the Christmas truce this book’s primary focus is the football played during the truce, those involved, and how it came about, rather than the truce as a whole. Ok, so that is only a subtle difference since the overall situation is clearly covered in some depth, but it’s one worth noting nonetheless.
There is a lot of insightful background into the two men and how they ended up together in the same muddy field that Christmas. As the blurb describes it: “The story of the football match is a light in the darkness as the world remembers the tragic waste of a hundred years ago.”
It is superbly researched, meaning that it isn’t necessarily taken in by every supposedly genuine tale of the football game, but picks the truth from the fiction as best as can be done given the passage of time. A genuinely moving and superb read, and a poignant reminder of a terrible time brightened by a moment of humanity.
- Aidan Williams - http://thesportsbookreview.com
Publisher - Uniform Press
Date of Publication - 14th November 2014