Accounts Quote by Paul von Hindenburg
“In the account book of the Great War the page recording the Russian losses has been ripped out. The figures are unknown. Five millions, or eight? We ourselves know not. All we know is that, at times, fighting the Russians, we had to remove the piles of enemy bodies from before our trenches, so as to get a clear field of fire against new waves of assault.”
About This Quote
Source Historical account, post-World War I memoirs
The passage notes the deliberate erasure of Russian casualty figures, highlighting the unknown scale of loss and the grim reality of battlefield conditions where enemy bodies had to be cleared for tactical reasons.
In simple terms: Russian war deaths were hidden, and soldiers cleared bodies to keep fighting.
Key Takeaway
Acknowledge the human cost of war and the obscured truth of casualties.
Themes
war
history
mortality
obscured data
Mood
somber
analytical
historical
Type
documentary
educational
When to use this quote
- military memoir
- historical analysis
- educational material
Key Concepts
military strategy
human cost
historical recordkeeping
Questions to Reflect On
- Why are casualty numbers sometimes omitted?
- What does clearing bodies reveal about wartime priorities?
A Different Perspective
Casualty figures may be concealed, limiting understanding of war’s true impact.
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