# War reenactment around the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 14, 2021, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055 "2021-12-14T16:35:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/1 "2021-12-14T16:35:38Z")
In the southeast region of the US, reenactment of the American civil war is a thing: > **[American Civil War reenactment](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War_reenactment)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > American Civil War reenactment is an effort to recreate the appearance of a particular battle or other event associated with the American Civil War by hobbyists known (in the United States) as Civil War reenactors, or living historians. > Although most common in the United States, there are also American Civil War reenactors in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, and Poland. > Reenacting the American Civil War beg... Some of the participants go to great lengths to be authentic to the equipment, technology, and dress of the times. From that Wikipedia page, I learned that there are people in other countries who also conduct reenactments of the American civil war. But are reenactments of _other_ wars around the world commonplace? Or is there some unique, global fascination with the American Civil War that doesn’t extend to other conflicts? ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/2 "2021-12-14T16:45:21Z")
No, the US Civil War isn’t special. In the UK, reenactments of the _English_ Civil War take place regularly at the sites of historic battles. [http://www.ecws.org.uk/](http://www.ecws.org.uk/) [https://www.thesealedknot.org.uk/](https://www.thesealedknot.org.uk/) I’ve also seen a reenactment of the Battle of Bosworth ([youtube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxIyTN38Wk4)), at Bosworth Field where Henry Tudor deposed Richard III. There’s also lots of ‘living history’ groups who may not wage war on each other, but certainly dress up in honour of WWI, the Black Death or whatever else. ---
**Author:** ![filmstar-en](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/50afbb/32.png) [@filmstar-en](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmstar-en)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/3 "2021-12-14T16:54:49Z")
There are similar war enactment societies in the UK. The English Civil War is popular, the 17th century war between the armies of Catholic Royalists (Cavaliers) and Protestant Parlimentarians (Roundheads) 1642–1651 I believe it the same dynamic with lots of arguments about the nuances of military uniform, tactics and practices. In Europe there are re-enactments of famous battles and Napoleons defeat at Waterloo is one of biggest events. > **[Reenacting the Battle of Waterloo](https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2015/06/reenacting-the-battle-of-waterloo/396479/)** > > Two hundred years ago, the decisive Battle of Waterloo was fought near Brussels, commemorated over the weekend by thousands of reenactors staging battles in period uniforms. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/4 "2021-12-14T17:06:16Z")
> [@filmstar-en](#): > > The English Civil War is popular, the 17th century war between the armies of Catholic Royalists (Cavaliers) and Protestant Parlimentarians (Roundheads) 1642–1651 Nitpick, although not a minor one. The war wasn’t a religious one - Charles may have had Catholic sympathies, and the leaders of the parliamentary forces may have included some pretty fierce puritans, but the war was about political supremacy (Parliament vs King). The majority on both sides would have called themselves Protestants. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/5 "2021-12-14T17:46:24Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > There’s also lots of ‘living history’ groups who may not wage war on each other, but certainly dress up in honour of WWI, the Black Death or whatever else. How does a reenactment of the Black Death work? Do the dress up in dirty rags and stack themselves horizontally in the backs of wagons? ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/6 "2021-12-14T18:26:21Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > In the southeast region of the US, reenactment of the American civil war is a thing Not just. I’m in the Chicago area and used to have a girlfriend whose family was into the whole scene. Uniforms for the men, period-appropriate dresses for the women (or the occasional war nurse/support) and they’d do a few reenactments each summer. I couldn’t tell you how many they had total but it was enough to put on an event at the park with decent sized crowds watching. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/7 "2021-12-14T18:44:35Z")
Also in the Chicago area. My wife and kids were very involved in American Rev War re-enacting. I did not participate. The re-enactments conflicted w/ golf! One time we went out east to Williamsburg for a big event. Yeah - they have golf courses out there to! 😉 The participants come up with background sketches of their character’s. My wife’s characters husband was missing! 😃 They used to go to conventions where folk did re-enactments of everything from Roman Empire through WWII. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/8 "2021-12-14T18:54:56Z")
The town of [Batley](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyORbG3I5Ys) in the UK does a famous reenactment of the Battle of Pearl Harbor. ---
**Author:** ![Bonum\_Legatum](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bonum_legatum/32/6183_2.png) [@Bonum\_Legatum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bonum_Legatum)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2021, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/9 "2021-12-14T19:00:15Z")
For a movie that touches on (American) Revolutionary War reenactors: _Sweet Liberty_ (1986). ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/10 "2021-12-15T08:07:17Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > How does a reenactment of the Black Death work? Do the dress up in dirty rags and stack themselves horizontally in the backs of wagons? Ha, ok, ‘medieval village life reenactment’ might be a better description. Although I did visit a ‘Black Death’ exhibition at the [London Dungeon](https://www.thedungeons.com/london/) when I was a child, which involved actors in a thatched cottage-set lying in beds wearing rags and covered in boils. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/11 "2021-12-15T08:20:28Z")
There are several lists of groups online: [https://nares.org.uk/member-groups/](https://nares.org.uk/member-groups/) [https://www.historic-uk.com/LivingHistory/ReenactorsDirectory/](https://www.historic-uk.com/LivingHistory/ReenactorsDirectory/) [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List\_of\_historical\_reenactment\_groups](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_historical_reenactment_groups) Quite a range ---
**Author:** ![themapleleaf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/themapleleaf/32/14349_2.png) [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/12 "2021-12-15T08:58:49Z")
Battle reenactment is quite popular in the Czech Republic, where I now live. I engage in it myself and a large number of my friends are involved in it. The interesting thing is, people not only reenact wars that have a historical relevance to this area, but also some that don’t. In particular, the American Civil War. I do two wars: the American Civil War - as a Southern infantryman - and the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 (a war with _major_ local historic relevance, it can be considered a precursor to World War I) - as a Saxon gunner (originally as a Saxon rifleman). See here: the [Czech American Civil War Association](https://www.cacwa.cz/en/). The events that I attend are for the public. However, I have also attended high-quality civil war reenactments in Germany (in Walldürn and Külsheim in the state of Baden-Württemberg) that were closed events for the reenactors only. ---
**Author:** ![Limmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Limmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Limmin)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/13 "2021-12-15T13:32:45Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > How does a reenactment of the Black Death work? **dunk** “Bring out yer dead!” **dink** “I’m not dead yet!” “C’mon, don’t be a baby. You’ll be stone cold dead in a moment” etc. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/14 "2021-12-15T13:47:29Z")
I thought nobody was goinf to mention Monthy Python’s reenactment of the Battle of Pearl Harbor both by [themselves](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUMTvzFj6Ys) and by [Kittens](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoiIrQjc6R8). ETA: In Spain they still reenact battles agains the moors, el Cid stuff, some quite spectacularly, with drums being played for a week until your hands bleed, lots of drinking and tomato throwing, not at the same time or place. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/15 "2021-12-15T13:49:37Z")
I mentioned the non-kitten version in post 8. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/16 "2021-12-15T13:50:26Z")
Oh, sorry, oversaw that. You did hide it a bit. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/17 "2021-12-15T13:52:55Z")
I’m subtle that way. ---
**Author:** ![phs3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phs3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phs3)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/18 "2021-12-15T20:55:15Z")
Germany seems to re-enact losing a World War every now and again. (Too soon?) There’s a surely apocryphal story of a BBC announcer saying after a Cricket World Cup loss, “I’m sorry to have to inform you that Germany has defeated us at our national game. But do remember that we’ve defeated them twice at theirs.” ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/19 "2021-12-15T22:07:16Z")
The Dutch have their biennial [Slag om Grolle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Grolle) re-enacting a famous 1627 battle of the Dutch Revolt. (To be fair it’s not just Dutch re-enactors who participate.) ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2021, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055/20 "2021-12-15T22:38:41Z")
> [@phs3](#): > > There’s a surely apocryphal story of a BBC announcer saying after a Cricket World Cup loss, “I’m sorry to have to inform you that Germany has defeated us at our national game. But do remember that we’ve defeated them twice at theirs.” Surely not in cricket - don’t think the Germans even have a cricket team. And certainly not one that would get into the cricket world cup. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/war-reenactment-around-the-world/956055.md?page=2)