The Christmas Truce of 1914
At the time, Pope Benedict XV suggested a temporary hiatus of the war for celebration of Christmas. The warring countries refused to create any official cease-fire, but on Christmas the soldiers in the trenches declared their own unofficial truce.
Many German and British troops sang carols to each other across the lines on Christmas eve. At the first light of dawn on Christmas day, some German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approached the allied lines across no-mans-land, calling out "Merry Christmas" in their enemies native tongues. Seeing that the Germans were unarmed, they climbed out of their trenches and shook hands with the enemy soldiers. The men exchanged gifts of food, tobacco, alcohol, buttons, hats, and sang songs. There was even a documented case of the soldiers from opposing sides playing a game of soccer.
The truce came only five months after the outbreak of war in Europe and was one of the last examples of chivalry between enemies in warfare. Roughly 100,000 British and German troops were involved in the unofficial truce along the Western Front. It has never happened again. Country singer Collin Raye has a song called "It Could Happen Again" on his Christmas album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCQpNPGq_mU
One frozen night in 1914 at the height of World War One
The unthinkable happened
All along the entire western front
The British and German soldiers lay down their weapons
In an unofficial cease fire to celebrate Christmas Eve together
They exchanged gifts and saw each other as brothers
And that peace lasted for two more days
When they were ordered back to battle
In those few days, though
Men remembered the reason for Christmas
Amongst the devastation
And it's a story that should never be forgotten
Through the smoke filled night
Silence rolls from both sides
Across a bloody battlefield
It was a cold Christmas Eve in 1914
For those who were there it seemed unreal
As time was still, the spirit moved the soldiers
To lay down their arms, raise their voice in song
And pretend for a while the war was over
If it could happen then, it could happen again
A world torn apart to join hands and hearts
To celebrate His birth, peace on this earth
If for one magic night, we could find again a reason not to fight
Maybe, there's a chance, this time it might last
As opposing sides approached
Through broken words they spoke
It wasn't long before they felt at ease
They shared their cigarettes
What they had they used as gifts
They didn't feel like enemies
With candles lit, they stood shoulder to shoulder
And on that field they found true common ground
And as they prayed, they dreamed the war was over
If it could happen then, it could happen again
A world torn apart to join hands and hearts
To celebrate His birth, peace on this earth
If for one magic night, we could find again a reason not to fight
Maybe, there's a chance, this time it might last
If it could happen then, it could happen again