From a British and French perspective the First World War was a disaster which still affects the national psyche. Both nations lost more men in that war than they did in the Second World War.
The British Army had about 800,000 fatalities during the war, plus at least another 50,000 Britons who died fighting in the armies of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa or other nations which made up the British Empire at the time. My grandfather's cousin, an artilleryman in the Canadian Army was one of these.
The French lost 1,400,000. I live in a small "commune" in the middle of France, current population about 800. There are 80 names on the local war memorial.
On 1st August 2014 at 16.00 a commemoration service was held at the local war memorial to remember the moment when France declared war on Germany one hundred years earlier with the tolling of church bells.
http://www.lamontagne.fr/limousin/ac..._11103278.html. The man in the sash is my friend Roger Aubard, the best pilot in the local model flying club. He was mayor of the commune at the time.
Some of the men who flew aircraft in the First World War had served on the ground first. Manfred von Richtofen was a cavalryman and my namesake served in the infantry for about a year. Others volunteered for the flying service after having been wounded, but to return to model aircraft, I have carefully checked the balance point on the BE2 with the lead under the engine and it seems to be within the range recommended. I hope to fly it in the next few days, light winds are forecast.
I fly back to England myself on Thursday to prepare my 1974 Rover for an event in Troyes in the Champagne area of France in September so there won't be much opportunity for flying over the next few weeks.