A World War One Disinformation Project: the Angels of Mons

One of the greatest legends of the Great War was created in August 1914, on the second day of the British retreat from the Belgian city of Mons. The British Expeditionary Force soldiers were being heavily pressed by a German army that outnumbered them twice. It seemed impossible to survive, but then, suddenly, Saint George and his mysterious 15th century band of bowmen appeared, and they held back the advancing Germans.

A Fleet Street reporter, the horror writer Arthur Machen, published this report of an eye witness. The article was written so graphically that readers took it literally and a few weeks later, British soldiers found themselves fighting side by side with an army of angels, “clad in white with flaming swords”. The legend of the Angels of Mons was born. Only, Saint George was never seen in Mons, and there never had been 15th century band of bowmen on the battlefield. It was a story, a piece of metaphorical imagery, Arthur Machen had invented.

But then, in 1930, there was this former member of the Imperial German Intelligence Services, who declared that British troops in 1914 really might have seen some Angels of Mons, as part of a special project concerning...

Could this be one of the first real "disinformation projects"?

Full story is here: The Angels of Mons

In world war one nobody had a helicopter that could hover over the enemy lines. So I have to call this as a hoax or a lie. How long was the extension cord for those projectors anyways?

The angels that were seen sure were a legend... but what or who was responsible for this men seeing angels? Could it be part of some mental - or other - experiment? War propaganda? It's a fact that a lot of soldiers during WO I near Mons declared they saw "angels". So, simply a mass hallucination or...?

disinformation on who's part?

the german intelligence agencies seemed to wish the explanation quashed and went so far as to deny the very existence of the source!!

do you believe that the disinformation was in muddying the water as regards the existence of the angels themselves?

If it could be "proven" that "God is on our side" through the apparitions of these war-angels, that would be a major step in winning the hearts and souls of not only the soldiers, but also their families back home. The First World War was also the First Propaganda War, with several projects planned by both Germans and allies... There undoubtedly was something going on in Mons, that's the reason why the Angels of Mons are called "the greatest myth" of the Great War... Question is: was it planned? Or has it just... happened that way?

And is it a coincidence that another great myth of the Great War also originated in Mons? I'm talking about "The Hell Hound of No Man's Land"...

[edit on 22-4-2009 by Historical Mystery Writer]

[edit on 22-4-2009 by Historical Mystery Writer]