Coming Home
Meticulously colourized images kindle a renewed appreciation of the burdens carried by homecoming soldiers
Winning wars lets countries tidy up some national stories, but losing wars often worsens domestic divisions. Winning certainly makes history appear neater: in the First World War, Canadians fought against tyranny for democracy and freedom—or so the story goes. But after a defeat, a nation can descend into social and political turmoil—that was Germany after the Great War. Soldiers returning from wars, both lost and won, unpack agendas, and it is often a challenge for a country to absorb hundreds of thousands of veterans for whom violence was their professional language.
Germany in the 1920s was plagued by hyperinflation, threat of revolution and veterans who felt betrayed...