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Hans Fritz was officer in Austro-Hungarian army who was chosen to command in one part of Bosnia and Herzegovina regiments in WW1( photo of them in my signature).
He wrote a book "Bosniak" about those days , and I will post the the most interesting parts.
This is for me really great book, I think that nobody better described the Bosniak man than this stranger, who was just 19 years old when he become lieutenant to Bosniaks, getting to command to people from totally different cultural orgins.
In his notes from war you can feel sad destiny of young people who probably didn't even know anything about each other who have to fight to the death( Fritz commanded in the the troops on Italian front), Bosniaks there were mainly fought against Italians and British/Scotland units.
I admit that I become emotional in some of his notes, to show some them in short:
It's Christmas. I'm sitting alone in a tent by the light of candles. I hear Bosniaks who sing songs from their homeland.
it doesnt matter how close I become with those guys, they are Muslims, Christmas doesn't mean anything to them and I'm alone in this moments.
Suddenly two soldiers come to me. They said that they know that is Christmas and they have something for me from all of them. They leave me a gift on the table and went out. I also give to them chocolate and cigars.
I opened the gift. It was beautiful silk shirt with silver cuffs.
I wonder how they got it.
In the end of the war:
I've heard in a dream " hallo, hallo, here radio Vienna and now we go with march:"Die Bosniaken kommen."
Bosniaks are coming!? No, they will never come again. Bosniaks also belong to the dead of this war, biggest ever. They are forgotten. Their songs that I sing with them are silent now. That is just a past. It's end. Kismet!
I will post the most interesting parts of book, unfortunately it's only on German and Bosnian language
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