The guns fell silent worldwide in what until that time was the greatest bloodletting that ever been endured by mankind. The great nations of Europe were almost bled white by the losses of men and treasure. Great Britain, Germany, France and Russia lost almost an entire generation in the mud of the trenches. America came out fairly lightly, since we only entered the war in 1917, but our losses were significant if it was one of your loved ones who fell. America suffered 116,516 K.I.A.s and 204,002 W.I.A.
Armistice Day as it was called was changed by the Federal Government in 1954 to Veteran's Day to honor the service of all of America's Veterans. I think it is fitting and proper that this was done, since we already commemorate Memorial Day on which we honor those who have sacrificed their lives in the service of their country. Even though we do it on a day that commemorates the end of a war, in a way, it's a celebration of those who made it and survived. So go out of your way to thank a vet today. They earned it.
An in memory of those warriors who died in the period 1914-1918 I enclose the following epithet written on the tombstone of a British Soldier in Normandy,
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