A real knockout competition.

[Cowboy]

French are rather pissed about it though.

Had better get back to topic though. Wasn't there an episode of the GOODIES about the Welsh religion.

[jargan83]

bugger the french

I was reading something that said Frogs Legs and Snails were only first eaten in the German siege of Paris in 1871.

Maybe Maccas in France could badge them as a siege burger or surrender meal?
Posted via Mobile Device

[Cowboy]

Interesting that frogs legs and snails got on the menu during the seige of Paris. The perfectionist in me needs to say that technically it was the Prussians who beat the French in 1871, as Germany didn't technically exist until after the war ended (and ultimately laid the foundations for the First World War).

France haven't done too well in the arts of war since 1812.

[welshrugbyfan]

There are parts of Wales that only speak Welsh still, mostly in the North of the country.

It is being reintroduced into the language at schools again. Now all the muslim kids will be able to speak it.

"Can you say Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyll-llantysiliogogogoch Mohammed?"

[Burgs]

I remember being a little surprised when a thirty something imigrant Scot farmer told me his grandfather had never spoken a word of English in his life living in the Highlands.

[James]

bugger the french

I was reading something that said Frogs Legs and Snails were only first eaten in the German siege of Paris in 1871.

Maybe Maccas in France could badge them as a siege burger or surrender meal?
Posted via Mobile Device

If it wasn't for the bloody French we wouldn't have to drive on the opposite side of the road in Europe/USA/everywhere outside the Commonwealth.

[Cowboy]

There are parts of Wales that only speak Welsh still, mostly in the North of the country.

It is being reintroduced into the language at schools again. Now all the muslim kids will be able to speak it.

"Can you say Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyll-llantysiliogogogoch Mohammed?"

Out of interest how similar are the original Welsh Irish and Scotish Highland languages?

[jargan83]

Interesting that frogs legs and snails got on the menu during the seige of Paris. The perfectionist in me needs to say that technically it was the Prussians who beat the French in 1871, as Germany didn't technically exist until after the war ended (and ultimately laid the foundations for the First World War).

Germany existed as the North German Confederation, but the Prussians and a few other states (that escape me at this time) were independent states and went to war with France. Victory in that war though led to the full unification of the German Empire under Kaiser Willhelm.

World War 1 started becasue of the Alliance System in Europe that had most powers divided into two sides, The Central Powers and the Entente Powers, the war was tpuched off because some Serbian bloke of a Serbian nationalist movment assasinated Austrian Archduke Ferdinand (heir to the Austrian Throne), when Austria weren't satisfied that Serbia had dished out enough punishment they decided military intervention was a good idea. so the Russia declared War on Austria, Germany declared war on Russia, France and Britain Declared war on Germany, and due to France, Britain and Germany having rather large colonial empires, most of which were independent nations at the outbreak, but having extremely strong ties to the the Mother Country or the Fatherland etc led to world conflict.

Well that is one of the causes at least, simmering tensions and arms races in the early 20th century, the Aristocratic (is that even a word) nature of the main powers also was blamed

[welshrugbyfan]

Out of interest how similar are the original Welsh Irish and Scotish Highland languages?

In a nutshell it depends on the era in history as the language evolved during the years of so many invasions from different countries. Not just one and no sorry was ever issued.

The Irish and Scottish celts would have spoken the closest language at one stage called Goidelic but even that would have had different forms.

The Welsh celts spoke a language called Brythonic brought over from the anglo saxon invasions. Before this invasion Goidelic was spoken in parts of Wales and southern England.

Welsh is a Germanic word for foriegners.

Great Britain got raped and pillaged by so many different countries they all had an influence on the language. Parts of Scotland, Wales and Ireland were so isolated by terrain and weather they managed to hang onto their celtic languages until today.

Wales saving grace during the invasions was it's steep hills. I imagine the highlands of Scotland were the same.

Irish people are just welsh people who could swim or is that the other way around?

[Burgs]

The Germans aren't much better mind you, without High German those in the south would find it very difficult to talk with those in the north and vv, that is direct from a Munich German.

[Cowboy]

Germany existed as the North German Confederation, but the Prussians and a few other states (that escape me at this time) were independent states and went to war with France. Victory in that war though led to the full unification of the German Empire under Kaiser Willhelm.

World War 1 started becasue of the Alliance System in Europe that had most powers divided into two sides, The Central Powers and the Entente Powers, the war was tpuched off because some Serbian bloke of a Serbian nationalist movment assasinated Austrian Archduke Ferdinand (heir to the Austrian Throne), when Austria weren't satisfied that Serbia had dished out enough punishment they decided military intervention was a good idea. so the Russia declared War on Austria, Germany declared war on Russia, France and Britain Declared war on Germany, and due to France, Britain and Germany having rather large colonial empires, most of which were independent nations at the outbreak, but having extremely strong ties to the the Mother Country or the Fatherland etc led to world conflict.

Well that is one of the causes at least, simmering tensions and arms races in the early 20th century, the Aristocratic (is that even a word) nature of the main powers also was blamed

I would argue that French resentment at the loss of Alsace & Lorraine was part of what contributed to the French desire to form the Entente treaty. The Central Powers would not have formed if Germany had not been reunified and that if Prussia had not beaten France, reunification would not have happened.
Britain only entered the war after the initial outbreak because Germany invaded neutral Belgium as a way of taking the scenic route into France.
It is an interesting chain of events though, one terrorist in Sarajevo managed to trigger a world war.

[Cowboy]

In a nutshell it depends on the era in history as the language evolved during the years of so many invasions from different countries. Not just one and no sorry was ever issued.

Maybe everyone had to realise appologies don't change anything and they had better get on with here and now rather than living in the past?

[jargan83]

I would argue that French resentment at the loss of Alsace & Lorraine was part of what contributed to the French desire to form the Entente treaty. The Central Powers would not have formed if Germany had not been reunified and that if Prussia had not beaten France, reunification would not have happened.
Britain only entered the war after the initial outbreak because Germany invaded neutral Belgium as a way of taking the scenic route into France.
It is an interesting chain of events though, one terrorist in Sarajevo managed to trigger a world war.

Not neccesarilly as after the Franco-Prussian war Britain favoured a strong Germany as that kept their traditonal enemy France in check, it wasn't until Germany began massive Naval construction that Great Britain re-considered where they stood.

However if the Germans hadn't invaded Belgium you could argue against Great Britain entering the war, although firm assurances had been given to France from Britain to protect France with it's Navy thus entering the war on the naval front, how long would it had been untill Britain committed ground troops as well? But like has been said, the German violation of Belgium's neutrality was the sealer for Britain's (and the rest of the Commenwealth) entry to the war.

If anything the French resentment at the loss of Alsace and Lorraine led to the harsh armistace forced upon Germany at the end of the war, which eventually led to the rise of Facism and the Second World War. Would France have eventually gone to war with Germany (who were a power in Europe) eventually just to take the territory lost in 1871 on thier own? But the outbreak of hostilities in 1914 presented them with a very convienent chance to take them back.

Europe was a powderkeg waiting to explode though and one Terrorist (one mans terrorist is anothers freedom fighter) set it off. Conflict in Europe was apparently inevitable

[slomo]

[QUOTE=welshrugbyfan;196308] Not bad for a country of only 3 million half of which I think are muslim now.


and the other half is Polish!!!...

[Cowboy]

Europe was a powderkeg waiting to explode though and one Terrorist (one mans terrorist is anothers freedom fighter) set it off. Conflict in Europe was apparently inevitable

I don't think that conflict was inevitable, rather I see the first world war as a case of people taking war too lightly as an option (something we can still learn from).
I view all the large scale European conflicts as having an underlying social/political driver. In the case of WWI democracy and the involvement of the population in the decision making process introduced a new element to conflict in europe. War had taken on a some what civilised facade over the previous 50 years and the populations of the european nations, new to the responsibility of democracy treated war with far too little respect. Hence the mass euphoria at the outbreak of wwI seen in almost every nation involved. Ironically the war ultimately lead to the abrupt end of most monarchies.
I know that this isn't the sole reason for the start of the war, but it is part of what made it possible.