From the recording LP14 EKLEKTIKA CHRISTMAS
“No Man’s Land 1914” is a poignant ballad that recalls the famous Christmas Truce during World War I, when British and German soldiers briefly laid down their arms near Ypres. The verses describe how carols crossed the battlefield, leading to handshakes, shared food, and even a spontaneous football match amid the frozen fields. The chorus highlights both the humanity and fragility of this moment: a game played in “no man’s land” before the brutal reality of war resumed. The bridge delivers the heartbreaking shift back to violence, as soldiers obey orders and turn once again into enemies. The final chorus and fading coda underline the tragic contrast—one fleeting day of peace remembered against the backdrop of years of bloodshed, with the football as a lasting symbol of hope, brotherhood, and the longing for peace in the midst of war.
Lyrics
NO MAN’S LAND 1914
[Verse 1]
It was Christmas Eve by Ypres town,
The guns grew quiet, the fire died down.
From German lines a carol came,
The British answered back the same.
[Chorus]
They played a match in no man’s land,
With frozen feet and shaking hands.
The score was three to two that day,
Before the killing came back to stay.
[Verse 2]
They shook cold hands, they shared their bread,
Swapped songs and jokes, their sorrows shed.
A leather ball was kicked to flight,
Where men had fallen in the night.
[Chorus]
They played a match in no man’s land,
In Belgium’s fields of frost and sand.
The game was brief, but hope was strong,
That peace might last, that war was wrong.
[Bridge: spoken/sung, quieter]
But morning came with orders clear,
“Return to posts, the foe is near.”
And comrades turned to foes once more,
As cannons thundered, as before.
[Final Chorus: slower, heavier]
They played a match in no man’s land,
By Ypres fields of blood and sand.
One day of peace the world recalls,
Before men marched back to the walls.
[Coda:a cappella / fading]
A ball still rolls through memory’s hand,
From that match in no man’s land.