MAN’S POST ABOUT HIS WWI VETERAN GRANDPA AND A BUNCH OF COINS LEAVES EVERYONE SURPRISED

 

28-year-old Vincent gained worldwide attention when he wrote a post on Reddit. Well, he had never imagined that his post that concerned his small family would get so viral that it will be everywhere, be it newspapers, tv, or radio. You might be wondering what his post was about? Well, it was about World War I, his grandfather who served as a soldier, and a bunch of coins.

The First World War

This incredible incident took place during the First World War. We all know about the First World War and the devastation it brought along but not many people know what triggered it. Well, the war followed after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Austro-Hungary’s Archduke in 1914. Germany that was called German Reich at that time had formed an alliance with the Austro-Hungarian Empire against France and Britain that happened to be the superpowers in those times. WWI was the first battle that involved the entire world.  

Everywhere

The war had covered television, newspaper, and radio. The war had taken over all the important issues in the world. Everyone was keeping an eye on war’s events, a neutral country like Belgium too. Belgium which had declared itself to be neutral too became a part of the war.   

A Neutral Country

During conflicts, countries are ought to take sides and if there are countries who are not willing to participate, they can remain neutral. Even though countries are thousands of miles far from the land where the war is going on, they all would have to declare their stand. Belgium called itself a neutral country immediately after the war started.   

Ultimatum

However, German was not happy with Belgium’s decision of staying neutral. That is why German gave an ultimatum to Belgium in August 1914 and asked the country to let the German troop move through the country’s territory so that they could reach France that happened to be the biggest enemy of Germany. If you look into the map you will see that Belgium is located between France and Germany. 

Will Stay Neutral

But Belgium remained firm on its decision. They denied any help to German Reich. However, Germany did not give any heed to their denial. In fact, on August 3, 1914, Germans attacked the country. And that is how Belgium got involved in the war.  

German Invasion Of Belgium

This act of German Reich flew into the face of the Treaty of London to which countries had sworn their complices. The place where this treaty was signed was London. The treaty was made on April 19, 1839. Countries who signed the treaty were France, Austria, Prussia, Great Britain, and the Netherlands. The mentioned countries accepted the neutral position of Belgium.   

With Belgium

Britain and France, the two most powerful European countries of those time went on to support Belgium. And there were many countries who took neutrality. Germany was one of the biggest superpowers in those days and standing against it meant complete devastation.  

The German Emperor

Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albrecht von Preußen, famously renowned as Kaiser Wilhelm II and also the last king of Prussia reined from 1888 to 1918. He shared a very good friendship with Austro-Hungary’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand. He could not contain his wrath when he heard about Franz Ferdinand’s demise. It is said that Kaiser Wilhelm II was the propellant of this war. He had no doubt that the assassination of the Archduke was carried out by a secret organization.     

Arguments

It is still a matter of dispute among academician whether it was his idea behind the announcement of the First World War. Wilhelm II had no intention of declaring war as he knew that the war would bring only damages with itself for the German Reich. However, the declaration of war made by Germany changed the face of the world.     

Alfred Graf Von Schlieffen

Things take a fast pace in international conflicts. The British Crown too jumped into the war against German Reich after the German army attacked Belgium, on August 4. The German army had to abide by the strategy made by the Chief of the General Staff of the German Army.  At that time the chief was Alfred Graf Von Schlieffen.

The Plan  

The German had made all the plans. According to their strategy, they were going to attack and defeat the country in a few weeks. Schlieffen came up with an army deployment plan to win the war. However, many military advisers suggested it. But Von Schlieffen did not flinch for once.

What Is It?

The plan by Schlieffen was clear. If not anyone, Schlieffen was sure about it. In order to put his plan into practice, the man needed a large amount of money. He had to move German Reich’s troops along with stocking enough food for them. As he realized that the number of soldiers was not enough, he began recruiting them from other branches.      

Steps Involved

There were three steps in the plan. The first step involved gathering of all the German soldiers and leading them towards the border with Belgium. The troops would surround the country from all sides. According to the second step, they would reach Paris, the French capital by crossing via Belgium. The last step was pretty simple. They would invade Russia after defeating France.     

The Germans attacked Liege

Belgium was a peaceful state and had no history of involvement in any war until WWI happened. The country could not escape the devastation caused by war. The Germans even unleashed its brutality on a vital city of Belgium namely, Liege.  

Not The Only City

Unfortunately, Liege was not the sole city that underwent such massive distortion. The entire city had burned down by the 16th of August. Each and every part of the city was under the control of the German army. And it was just the beginning.    

Living In War

Germans took only two weeks to win all of Belgium except for a tiny part in western Flanders. This part assisted the Belgian Army to secure and fight the Germans troops at the time of war. 

Saving Freedom

The Belgian Army participated in the war only to protect its sovereignty and in a way helping France. Marking Belgium’s first involvement in an international battle.  

The Battle Of Buggenhout

Everything here was fast paced. After conquering Liege, Germans kept on winning other cities of the country like Namur. The city came under the control of German by August 24. The Belgian Army did a counterattack by starting the Battle of Buggenhout on September 25.

Strategic Plan

The Belgian army had made a strategic plan of this Battle Of Buggenhout. The strategy was put in work to destroy all the communications at many points. How were they going to do this? They were going to achieve it by cutting the main communication lines in Brabant, Hainault, and Limburg. They did it on September 25.    

A Belgian Soldier Appears

We can’t see all the events that occur in the war due to how large-scale they usually are. We see the bigger picture and tend to ignore how soldiers live on the battlefield, what do they think about war. No need to say, war is the most impersonal event one can be a part of. Here soldiers put their lives on stake even if they don’t support the reason.     

The Man

This amazing incident takes place with a Belgian soldier named Optatius Buyssens in the Battle of Buggenhout. We found this amazing story about this amazing person through Reddit.   

Vincent Buyssens

Vincent Buyssens is a digital strategist by profession. The 28-year-old strategist lives in Antwerp, a city in Belgium. He is an active user of website Reddit. And with that, he is also the great-grandson of Optatius Buyssens, a soldier in WWI.    

Survived Through War

His family was one of those families who suffered the consequences of the unforgettable war. Vincent had heard a lot of stories from his grandfather. So, he decided to share them with the world by posting them on the social media site. But out of all the stories here on Reddit, why did this one become famous? Well, there is a valid reason behind it. 

Capturing People’s Attention

It was in November 2018, he posted the story on Reddit. He could have never imagined that the story he was putting on the site was going to cause a ripple in the world. The post became viral with hundreds of people sharing it. Many people commented on the post. Not only that, the post gathered 130.000 upvotes. Why?  

Breaking News

The story did not only shake the netizens but journalists also. Not just any ordinary news channels but big ones like BBC and CNN. People suddenly were taking a keen interest in the story of Vincent and Optimus, his great-grandfather. However, Vincent himself did not know much about the life story of his great-grandfather. 

Optatius Buyssens

Now, let us find out what was so amazing about his story. Men at the beginning of the 20th century did not have many options to explore. And due to the recurrence of wars at the beginning of the 20th century, men had to serve in army regardless of their will. Optatius joined the military in those times.     

Failed

The path was not easy at all for Optatius. In order to admit to the military, one has to pass many medical as well as psychological exams. Optatius attempted once but could not get through due to his injured hip. He failed in his first attempt, but that was not his last try.    

A True Patriot

He was following his dream and nothing was going to stop him from achieving that. Even though he failed in his first attempt, he refused to give up and continued trying until he got through. It took him two years to get inside the Belgian army. His story had just begun. 

The Day Of Duty

The day of his duty came at last. It happened on September 26 of 1914. He was deployed near Lebbeke. It was one of those places where the Battle of Buggenhout occurred. Not long before he admitted himself into the army, he found himself fighting in the first battle of Belgium after Germans invaded the country. 

Escaping From The Germans

The Battle of Buggenhout started in Limburg. However, things changed drastically. And it is because of that, a couple of battalions of Belgian troops were relocated to the city of Lebbeke, the place. Buyssens were carrying on their scouting mission over the place. The army hardly took a day to conquer the city.  

The Army

The Belgian army shifted to Lebbeke as they did not want to suffer the attacks unleashed by the German army. They assumed that the city would provide them with a peaceful atmosphere, as it was way far from the center of the war. Little did they know that the German soldiers were hiding in Lebbeke too.  

A Shot In The Chest

The soldiers had no idea that they had been noticed by the German troops and that they are soon going to be attacked by them. But when they learned about it, it was too late. Optatius could not understand what to do. Just a week ago he was living a peaceful life unlike today, where he was standing in the middle of a battlefield. But that was not the end.         

Not A Single Battle

The man not only survived the war but also came up with an unbelievable story. Germans had gone brutal shooting anyone coming their way. Clearly, they were not in a mood to spare anyone. The battle was a horrifying one. The whole of the Belgian troops got slain except for Vincent. It was surprising as the man had never fought a single battle before.    

The Lucky Coins

It is not that he managed to dodge the German troops. He did confront them and even got shot right in his chest but miraculously he walked out of the war defeated ad unscathed. How? It all happened because of a bunch of coins kept in the breast pocket of Optatius. Now understood? 

Viral

This is the story Vincent posted on Reddit which went viral in a matter of a day. Vincent explained, “He was very lucky since the bullet that should have killed him ricocheted off of the coins, thus saving his life” However, this is not the only unbelievable twist in the story, there is one more.  

The Paradoxes Of Destiny

Vincent explained, “Ironically, the coins were the reason why he got shot.” Well, it is the coins only that gave away his location to the German troops. The clinking noise coming out of his pocket led the troops of the rival team to him. However, it was these coins only that saved him. Vincent exclaimed, “Ironically, the coins were the reason why he got shot.” “Because it was the noise of them clinking together in his breast pocket which gave his position away.”  

Hit

Who can survive a bullet hit on the chest? German soldiers were sure that the man had died. However, they stepped forward towards him to crosscheck if he was still alive. Optatius, on the other hand, laid on his back facing the ground like a lifeless body.    

A Good Actor

Buyssens’ intuition had warned him already. He could hear the soldier coming towards him. He had to act lifeless. Any movement could cost him his life. He remained still until German walked away from him.    

They Didn’t Get It

Fortunately, Germans could not catch him and misunderstood him to be dead. Thereafter, the German troops departed from the battleground. The man had just fooled dead. He stood still or more precisely “stunned” for about two hours. He wanted to make sure that there was no one around keeping an eye on him.

Headed Britain

After the battle, Optatius entered the Netherlands by crossing the Belgian border. And after successfully getting into the country he traveled to Britain where he got medical assistance and recovered rapidly. Meanwhile, his family did not hear anything about him for a year.

Not Good

However, things did not improve a bit for Belgium. In fact, it kept worsening. Germany got its control over 95% of Belgium. Germans even formed a ruling body for the country that they named, General Government.

A Miraculous Story

That is why Vincent’s post gained so much popularity. No need to wonder the readers felt a sense of respect for him. The man did not lose his senses and did what was required. Though the man was new to the military he did what can be expected from experienced officials only.   

Evidence

This story does not seem real. And what evidence do they have to verify it? Well, they do have evidence. Vincent was not lying. He gave a befitting answer to all those who were questioning the veracity of the story.   

The Soldier’s Journals

After hearing the story, Vincent talked to his grandfather who actually confirmed that it really happened. The old man scattered several of Optatius’s journals before him. There were many papers that had published the story. Optatius had written the details in his personal journal as well.   

Talking Out

Vincent replied, “When I first heard the story years ago I couldn’t believe it, but when I talked with my dad and granddad and read through his journals it became immediately clear to me that it was legit.”

Sharing The Story

When Vincent shared this story he knew that it will be interesting but had never imagined it to go viral. However, the man made a confession in an interview that many people did not believe it and asked for evidence. Vincent dealt with them very nicely. 

Close To Heart

Vincent did reply to them but after collecting all the evidence. The man did not want to create any controversy as the topic was sensitive and close to his heart. The replies he made lastly did make sense to everyone. He told. “There were some people who were skeptical on Reddit, but when I explained to them the full story in detail they were appreciative and thought it was really cool.       

Letters

He explained, “The letters were the missing piece that we didn’t know existed until today.”  “And they were kept in a museum just behind the corner.”

Made It

Optatius survived the war and continued his service in the army. The man died of heart disease in 1958.

Cool Story

“Most people found it just a cool story. Including my family. I’m sure this will be the subject of the night during Christmas Eve.”