Shot at Dawn: Executions in the Great War (Ypres - Episode 6)

See episode 1 of this series here - • The Ypres Salient: Hel...
From 1914-1918 there may not have been a deadlier, more horrifying place to be than the small town of Ypres, Belgium. Millions were killed and wounded in the fields surrounding this medieval town with a storied history. Join me as we explore the town and its history, and talk about what made this place hell on earth in the Great War.
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#History #WW1

[@instantbadass]

It's a real shame your historic site videos don't get the views your reaction vids do. A lot of great work and emotional stories that viewers are missing out on.

[@lucianobertoncasanovas4342]

It sucks even more when you consider that because of their less popularity he literally can't get to make as many of them

[@Ronaldl2350]

These men were not cowards by any means. These are men that were pushed beyond the breaking point of what a person could endure. Terrible tragedy. My grandpa was in the AEF. He came back with what is called today as PTSD. My mom told me stories of some of his behavior after the war, that was disturbing. So terrible and such a waste that happened to these men. So heartbreaking.

[@Barrellockingnut]

You don't narrate, you dont dispense information and stats , you dont overview , you tell accurate , emotionally soulful stories of these places , your style is one of osmosis of the events you portray. I congratulate you on the time and care you make with these videos and hopefully you can reach many , many more audiences with your work.

[@kylekulpa7572]

17 years old trying to endure the insanity of the Great War...I would absolutely understand being unable to do anything while hearing the ringing sounds of bullets being shot and people all around you dying..

[@Crytica.]

Heavy topic brought and told in all the respect it deserves. I'm glad all of them got pardoned because what these men went through was so incredibly dehumanizing... Thanks again for covering these smaller things/stories like the executions in Poperinge.

[@Pih_TV]

You have to think about what we think is dehumanizing now was totally normal then. It still took the UK until 1930 to abolish the capital punishment for deserters. Desertering was punishable by death, it's how it was. And I agree with you, it is horriying. Especially for those who were obviously mentally damaged by war. I've been in live combat, and I know how deep the unseen scars go.

[@StarrySkies80]

May the souls of these men forever rest in peace. They were not cowards. They were in the middle of hell, forced to face things we'll never truly comprehend. My heart aches for the ones clearly suffering from PTSD. Albert's letter at the end brought tears to my eyes. Another fantastic video, Chris. I appreciate all the work and care that you put into this.

[@Tostitos78]

I love how it’s a crime punishable by death to not want to die or kill for some quarrels by the rich.

[@1anthonybrowning]

This was a hard one to watch. You tell their stories well.

[@BirdHorse]

I don't normally tear up at these sort of things but that letter at the end really made my eyes water. Rest in peace to all these brave soldiers who fought and died on all sides, in all wars.

[@CrossTrain]

Wow. Incredibly and might I say, unexpectedly powerful. Beautiful recitation of Albert's letter to conclude. Wow. 😢

[@tohtorrent]

pardoned in 2006? took them awhile. Their direct relatives have long been dead by that time.

[@ToddSauve]

Words rather fail a person when considering these poor souls. How can you blame anyone for wanting to walk away from such organized insanity as a war where tens of millions were slaughtered for not much of a good reason at all? Sigh. 🤷‍♂

[@lincolngreen9398]

One of your best videos yet! That letter had me in tears.

[@KS1919_]

Hello, Chris. I just wanted to express my appreciation for what you do and how you’ve helped me get through some very tough times in my recent life. I’m not sure as to when exactly I found your channel but it has been nothing but a wonderful experience to hear from someone who has such a passion for history. In my family, I can confidently say I’m the only one who has had a great interest in history, it has been the case ever since I’ve been a kid and who knows how many hours I’ve spent on here watching historical content. Being a 22-year-old college student, I can have very limited free time during the day, so I tend to watch the majority of content at night. What I find very admirable of you apart from your love of history is your personality. You present your knowledge in such a way that is easily understood and very entertaining. You have always appeared friendly and kind to everyone who has expressed their thanks to you and your channel and have always appeared as a kind and caring person. It reminds me much of my father, who I lost in February of 2021. I can even hear traces of his voice in yours, and it has been very soothing in times where my mind is not in the right place. I think it’s normal for individuals to connect with those who remind them of close friends or family, and I don’t think there could be anyone better than you to help in that regard. When the bad days and nights come, I will often play your videos for the sake of hearing your voice, as weird as it sounds, but it does so much to calm my mind. Sometimes we all need healthy distractions from the real world, especially when we’re down, and watching/listening to you has been near the top of my list of these healthy distractions. You are someone who has been a role model for me and I’m sure there are others out there who can say the same. I appreciate the effort you put into your work, whether it be a reaction, an original series or even reacting to some unfriendly comments on the site. I hope all is well for you and I am always looking forward to learning new things from your content. Thank you again, Chris. May God bless you and your family. - Kyle

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

Thank you so much for the support and kind words, Kyle. I'm glad to be one tiny part of making your days a little better.

[@michaeldouglas1243]

Chris is absolutely right, I have handloaded ammo and use to compete in rifle competitions years ago and u can 100% easily tell at minute u fire a hit round or a blank round. The blank has zero to minimal recoil as there is no projectile to thrust backwards unlike a loaded or hot round. Those men knew once they fired for sure

[@michaeldouglas1243]

Sorry typo, hot not hit

[@danielas718]

In the movie "Soldado Milhões" ("Hero on the front" in english) there's a scene where is shown soldiers being chosen to be part of a firing squad and what came after. The scene gave me chills for I felt sorry for the soldier picked against his will. The movie is set in 1918 during the 4th Battle of Ypres (or the Battle of La Lys, as we call it in Portugal), is based on the life of Captain Aníbal Milhais and depicts the reality of life in the Portuguese trenchs. I recommend it, the story of Soldado Milhões is worth knowing.

[@josel.peralta3179]

Thank you for doing God’s work and teaching us history without thrills and frills. Super educational!

[@briangarber8784]

That last story is truly unbelievable... what a haunting letter

[@jngerhart9559]

I hope you keep doing videos of this nature. Such heart and care, it’s clear you’ve poured a lot of time, passion and expertise into crafting the shots and script. Thank you for it!

[@mattf8479]

I need to watch more of these because I'm blown away by all of them. That letter at the end was so painful to hear.

[@jimgu2578]

Loved every single video of this series so far. Thank you Chris!

[@Andrew.Schlei]

I appreciate the research you do on these "smaller" stories.

[@TribeTaz]

Second emotional video in a row. Very sad. You really have a way of telling their stories with emotion. Not many can do it the way you do. You have a special talent. The last story and letter had me crying. You honored him well

[@718Insomniac]

The work you do is real good, really good. Thank you.

[@Loverofcats14]

All the stories of the men were so very sad. But the last one brought tears to my eyes. These men were not cowards, they were just human. The horrors that all the men went through, seeing their friends and comrades killed in front of them, having to go over the top, knowing it was almost certain death, they were heroes, just like all the men who fought for their country. Most of our families men were killed during WWI. My uncle survived WWII , however, he had to live with shell shock for the rest of his life. Both of my grandfather’s also came home from WWII, as did some of my uncles, but not one of them would speak about the war.

[@oliverghunter]

Thank you so much for your well-researched, filmed and presented series of films. They are interesting, informative, engaging and incredibly emotional. Your commentary is level-headed, from -the -heart and perfect for the subject matter. I also hope to be able to visit some of the sites you have in the future, and see where members of my own family fought, died and a few survived. The letter had me in tears, so poignant. Thank you.

[@darthcalanil5333]

that letter at the end almost broke me

[@wiseone1013]

The injustice and cruelty of it all is overwhelming.

[@fantasticvoyages-sg8sw]

So sad. I'm going for a short trip to the Somme and Ypres in a few weeks, in part due to your great series. These videos really are essential viewing.

[@arozes8324]

the last story had me crying so sad 😢

[@anderskorsback4104]

A superb narration. I fully expected most of the cases to simply be cases of unrecognized shell-shock, but your delivery really hit home the tragedy. Particularly the last one, about how he was condemned for failure despite everything he had done and suffered until that point. That hit a bit close to home, for my own reasons.

[@jamesbroomhead5381]

A beautiful video on a heartbreaking topic, Chris. The Shot at Dawn Memorial - the statue of the blindfolded man shown - is based on the appearance of Private Herbert Burden, who is commemorated on the Menin Gate. Also on the Menin Gate is Corporal George Povey, who went missing with two Privates for just 45 minutes before being returned to the trenches near Ypres. Povey was the only one of the three to be sentenced to death, as he was the highest ranked.

[@nkley1]

Wow….that letter is just heartbreaking.

[@stephenparker6362]

Hi Chris that was very moving, it was so sad and they were so young. You told it brilliantly and the music fitted so well, if this doesn't get 50K views I will be astonished and at a loss.

[@joeparvana9549]

Paths of Glory. That's what I thought of watching this. Very well done, so sad

[@Kornasas]

I teared up at last part. Having a daugther, i cant image the pain that Alberts mother and father would endure after reading that letter. Heartbreaking.

[@davehopkin9502]

There is absolutely no doubt that a soldier firing a blank round would know full well it was a blank, the recoil felt is entirely different.

[@TheHistoryUnderground]

As of the war wasn’t tragic enough….

[@Casserole391]

There's a really good book by the writer of War Horse, titled Private Peaceful that talks a lot about the horrors of executions specifically in the British Commonwealth Forces and is such a powerful read like this video

[@sterlingmoose9335]

They made it into a movie in 2012.

[@chrisdawson2119]

So powerful, and delivered with such dignified emotion.

[@Onlytheclouds]

Thanks Chris. Was wondering if you were still planning on making this video. Cheers.

[@ST69TS]

Wow that letter really got to me... Thank you so much for sharing their stories with us!

[@sebastiantv2855]

Great Video as always!

[@tsrichards16]

Great video. Well done.

[@666mrdoctor]

This was a wonderful video. Thank you so much.

[@NoahFromOhio]

Another powerful video. Looking forward to more.

[@beslim15]

I love how you give these stories life. Thank you!

[@cobbler9113]

For those of you who have watched Downton Abbey, there is a sub plot that gets carried out throughout a couple of seasons where a relative of one of the servants is shot for "cowardice" and his community refused to put his name on the war memorial. I've looked this up and it sadly does seem to be true that these men were not remembered in the way they should have been, as victims of this brutal war. Their families were often left to bear the stigma of being related to a coward by their communities. Even as late as 1993, then UK Prime Minister John Major refused to pardon these men saying it would be an insult to those who died in battle. However they now do have their own memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire and have been pardoned since then.

[@anthonyeaton5153]

You should not mix fiction with fact.

[@thunderpilot2616]

These videos he’s make are great I Learn something new in every video.

[@luis_g_77]

Great video and very moving

[@zachmoore4550]

Chris I have been watching your videos for years. Never an on location one. As a veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom I wept at this video.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

Thank you for your service. There is, at least for me, something uniquely sad about the stories of these men.

[@zachmoore4550]

@@VloggingThroughHistory I’ll admit I am a history nerd. (U.S. Mostly) but my knowledge of the Great War was lacking. As a proud member of the 82nd Airborne my knowledge started in WW2. More and more I’ve been binging WW1 content and I can only imagine the hell they went through. I feel like what I did was nothing comparatively and I suffered/ suffer from PTSD. How did they do it?

[@Chris_GY1]

I have visited Poperinge on numerous occasions I have visited where soldiers executed the post was moved a number of years ago, the death cells, Talbot House to visit and finish the visit with a nice cup of tea and some of the nearby cemeteries, my last visit was last July. I have visited graves of some of those Shot at Dawn including the only soldier from The Lincolnshire Regiment to be shot after I had seen a plaque at The National Memorial Arboretum at The Shot at Dawn Memorial with his name on I went to The CWGC (Commonwealth War Graves Commission) website while I was standing there and typed his name in and found where he was buried I added his name and the name of the cemetery to my list for visiting that November. The statue at The National Memorial Arboretum at the Memorial to those Shot At Dawn is of one of those shot. I visited The Arboretum last October I stopped at The Freemason Memorial to remember fellow Freemasons who died in both World Wars, I also stopped at The Royal Artillery Memorial to pay my respects to my paternal grandfather and I stopped at The Royal Air Force Regiment Memorial to pay my respects to my maternal grandfather also I stopped at The WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force) Memorial to pay my respects to my maternal grandmother.

[@michaelwalker7400]

Glad to see these added to Spotify.

[@dary7093]

Nice 2 uploads a day

[@mikecheeseman6292]

Very very sad 😞 What could you do IF you would not kill 😞 very powerfull video 😞

[@phantomtitan9792]

Wow that was a heavy topic.

[@tyrionstrongjaw7729]

Random comments don't push engagement etc but this was a piece of a story that should be told.

[@davidfrost5485]

My dad, who was a Sapper during the Second World War, would just give an ironic ffff sort of noise and say course you could bloody tell. It was down to the kick from a live round. Never did ask how he knew. Somethings are best unsaid.

[@BHuang92]

It's sad to think that a hundred years later, we still get to see another atrocity in Bucha..........

[@yallahyallah4220]

Innocentia Nihil Probat - British High Command

[@wwciii]

If you want to know why the Austrailians refused British death sentances watch the movie Breaker Morant. It was because of that incedent that the first law passed by the Austrailian Parliment required the confirmation of a death sentance against an Australian national by the Govenor General of Austrailia.

[@fredklein3829]

Very sad stories.

[@Dav1Gv]

Another great video, like you I've visited Poperinge Cemetary. It's a very moving experience. By coincidence, I am doing a talk on Tuesday about the court-martial of Sub Lieut Dyett one I have done several times. I take the audience through the evidence, divide them into groups and ask for their verdict and sentence. Most panels give a Guilty verdict but very few award the Death sentence. The author of the book this talk is based on was very interested in the results. | have a lot of sympathy for many of the men who were shot - I'm British so can't speak for the AEF - but some deserved it eg the two men in the Salonika Campaign who went to sleep on sentry duty. I have not doubt many men nodded off as they looked out over the trench and were woken by a smart kick by an NCO but these two were doen in the trench with their rilfes proped up near them. Had the enemy made a raid other men in their unit would have died because of their negligence. Two other men left the column while their Battalion was moving up for the attack on 1 July 1916, got drunk, went to sleep in a field and failed to show up for the attack, Their comrades went over the top and suffered very serious casualties. My sympathy for them is also limited. I don't see why the man from the RWF's last letter had to be 'smuggled out', Men were allowed to write home - Edwin Dyett's letter is on record. Normally the Padre who would have spent the night with the man would make the arrangements and also write a covering letter. Blindfold and Alone - a quote from Kipling - is the best book on the subject in my view.

[@mrsusan5672]

What I find the most incomprehensible about these executions is that these men were volunteers, they weren't professional soldiers, they had chosen to go to war. You'd think the generals might have had a bit of pity for brave men who had risked their lives for their country.

[@barbaraallen435]

These men were traumatised especially those in their teens .

[@carlsherwin5557]

Been to these death cells in poperinge a sad place

[@daveglover6115]

The British MOD and many MPs baulked at the idea of any kind of pardon for the SAD soldiers, saying 'those were different times etc'. Public opinion and interest did a lot to sway the topic when it became clear that many of court marshals could be deemed technically illegal and biased in the extreme. Haig's comments of 'making an example of' didn't help the predudice against the accused...

[@MrThebirddog]

It would have been very hard to attack across an open field, it would have been harder not to.

[@stevenhearnden6103]

Currently, I wouldn't p*** on my country if it was on fire, let alone fight for it. 🇬🇧 I'm afraid these brave men wasted their time. 😞

[@TC-qd1zw]

Some of these lads were only guilty of medical grounds. Still the family names of the Generals had to be maintained.

[@fivefingersareenough]

The brits used all their colonies strength to muster the axis, it shows how the brits, where in brittles😴

[@rodcoates7027]

The policy was 'Pour encourager les autres'.

[@francisbacon7738]

Shameful, shameful, shameful.

[@IMfromNYCity]

18:22 Pvt Troughton's death date (April 22, 1915), is harrowing. That was the day when the first major gas attack occurred at the Western Front, right by where he was executed at Ypres. It was likely he was doomed either way, as if he were instead back at the front, he would have died in the first chlorine gas attack in history.

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

He wouldn’t have. British troops weren’t involved in that attack. The victims of that gas attack were French territorial troops from Morocco and Algeria. Troughton’s unit, the 1st Royal Welsh Fusiliers, weren’t anywhere near that sector of the Ypres salient.

[@wout4yt]

The (bad) translation for the poem: Light, gray light, the worn night bursts open in me and dies My hands around the glass, my last The priest with his god, the doctor with his opium Mother of God She shall now rise, warm her feet at the coals She shall turn around in the sheets Don't aim for me boys aim for the white cotton on my chest Light, gray light etches words, coarse words in the wall

[@mathewdean3334]

What exactly was field punishment

[@Corsair37]

I can only imagine how hard it was to read that soldier's letter at the end. As a veteran, and a son of a veteran, I find myself of two minds about the executions for desertion. One on the one hand, there's something to be said for maintaining discipline. On the other hand, every individual has their breaking point. Knowing what we now know about the psychological trauma and impact of combat, I think it's perfectably reasonable to no longer have capital punishment for desertion, and andy convictions of desertion should take into account circumstances and emotional state. There is still one scenario that I support the death penalty for. Treason. I thought at the time (and still think this) that the Walkers' should have been executed for their treason. I have little to no mercy for those who choose to actively and willingly betray their oaths, and put their brothers and sisters at risk, for their own gain.

[@mikecheeseman6292]

And I must add... IF you were scared... 😞

[@backfromthebrink122]

Did any civilian conscripts get executed? imagine being forced into an army you never wanted to be in then killed for not wanting to fight. I could understand with volunteers or official army, but they couldn't execute civilian conscripts surely?

[@VloggingThroughHistory]

There were members of the Chinese labor corps executed but for murder, not desertion or cowardice.

[@OfficialAgentGaming]

People coerced into fighting a political war for their respective governments should never be executed for refusing to fight.

[@TonyBongo869]

Haig was rewarded for his service with a Peerage and £10,000 in gold.

[@nonamesplease6288]

Searing video.

[@paulnijsten8390]

1.42 that's Dutch. Want me to translate?

[@DreynHarry]

have been pardoned 2006 - well I guess, those victims can buy something for this pardoning.... for sure they will get their lost years back.... ohhhh wait a second, no they wont, cause they killed them.... for nothing.... sorry, but what a joke 😡 very thoughtful video, sir. well done.

[@michaelaburns734]

Sad but 2006 closed this chapter for those solders with the pardons for AWOL.