But newly discovered letters have revealed that plans for at least one kickabout between opposing sides on the Western Front were thwarted by superiors. The letters also suggest that the Christmas Day truces of 1914 were possibly not as friendly as previously thought, with one British regiment threatening to shoot any Germans who left their trenches to fraternise. The two letters, being sold at auction next month, were written by Major John Hawksley to his sister Muriel. They were written during the truces, when it is believed that as many as 100,000 British and German troops downed their weapons for a series of unofficial ceasefires along the Western Front. Enemy troops were said to have stepped out of their trenches, shook hands and allowed fallen troops to be buried. Other accounts talk of footballs matches beyond the trenches. In the letters Major Hawksley, of the of the Royal Field Artillery, described his Christmas Day as “quite extraordinary” but revealed his own unease at the situation.

"This is an extraordinary state of things and I don't altogether approve,” he said “Still it gives me & my observation post a quiet time.” Major Hawksley said a football match had been arranged for 10am on Boxing Day but “our authorities stopped it”. He also recalled how the Seaforth Highlanders were uncomfortable with a ceasefire and would “have none of it”. He wrote: “…when the Germans in front of them tried to fraternize & leave their trenches, the Seaforths warned them that they would shoot – I shall go out there again this afternoon to see what’s been happening today [sic].” The letters do however, also recall touching moments of humanity amid the brutality of the trenches. Major Hawksley, who was 37 at the time, tells his sister how, on Christmas Eve, troops from both sides sang together before agreeing not to shoot. “I was at my observation post just a few yards behind the infantry advanced trenches on the afternoon of Xmas Eve,” he wrote. “After dark our men & the Germans whose trenches were only 1 to 2 hundred yards apart sang in English Home Sweet Home together.

Then God Save the King was sung by both. I don't know what words the Germans sang to this tune. “Then late on a German shouted out to the Warwicks [The Royal Warwickshire Regiment] – 'We wont fire tomorrow if tomorrow if you dont'. Our men shouted back 'All right'. He went on: “When it was light on Xmas day, each side showed itself above the trenches. “fred meyer drapery rodsFirst head & shoulders then seeing they were not shot at – showed a little more – until a German got out of his trench & then an Englishman did. jcpenney luna curtainsFinally about 100 Germans & 60 Englishmen including officers on both sides stepped out & fraternized with each other!!” hookless shower curtain 84 inches long

Referring to the football match arranged for Boxing Day he said he found out “our big guns were due to fire”. “The O.C. [officer commanding] Warwicks warned the German officer that they were going to be shelled & that he hoped they would not be hit & all went back to their trenches. “When the shelling began & they saw that they themselves were not to be the targets, they got out again. your zone curtains purple stardustThen a German officers said to one of ours 'Look here we dont want to shoot You & you dont want to shoot us' Why shoot at all?!! net curtains unfashionableSo the arrangement between them as it stands at present is that neither of them shoot, & that if they have to begin they will fire three volleys over their heads as a warning.” extendable curtain rod argos

The second letter, written two days later on December 29, described how his Christmas Day “passed off very quietly” and was “the sort of Christmas that one sees in Christmas cards”. “It was a fine & frosty day & the ground was white,” he wrote. He went on: “The Germans in our immediate shouted over their trenches to the Warwicks on Christmas Eve night – 'We wont fire tomorrow if you do not'. “asda duck egg blue curtainsI heard them singing away hard just as it was getting dark that evening. So it was decided not to shoot.” Major Hawksley died in France in 1916 after being hit by a sniper. He is buried at Becourt Military Cemetery. He had previously served in South Africa and Sudan and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for services on the retreat from Mons in September 1914. The letters, over 10 pages, were written in pencil and sent to his sister’s home in Coatham Mundeville, Darlington, County Durham.

They are expected to fetch between £3,000 and £4,000 when they are sold by Bonhams in London on June 19. Simon Roberts, books and manuscripts specialist at Bonhams, said: “I gather that there were a number of these unofficial ceasefires up and down the line and I think there was possibly more than one football match but it does seem that this particular one was rather thwarted because he says that in both the letters which is rather sad. “Obviously a lot of soldiers did write home but a lot of letters did not find their way to the recipient and they often were not as well written as these – and they are in pretty good condition so that is quite unusual. "There is a lot of interest in this sort of thing, it has really taken off in the last five years or so with the anniversaries and now that some of the last people involved in the war now they are no longer with us.”He was the man who saved the world by single-handedly averting World War Three five decades ago, yet he died humiliated, outcast and an unknown.

Only now has his story has come to light.A documentary shown tonight told how for 13 days during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, the world held its breath as the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. stood on the brink of nuclear war.At the height of the Cold War, when paranoia on both sides meant the slightest provocation could spark nuclear war, four submarines secretly set sail from Russia to communist Cuba. Averted war: Vasili Arkhipoy (pictured left, and right aboard a submarine), saved the world by single-handedly averting World War Three with one decision 50 years ago, yet he died humiliated, outcast and an unknown Only a handful of the submariners on board knew that their ships carried nuclear weapons, each with the strength of the bombs dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima in 1945. Vasili Arkhipov, aboard the sub B59, was one of them. As his craft neared Cuba, U.S. helicopters, aeroplanes and battleships were scouring the ocean for Russian subs. 'At that period of time it was called

"special weapon", not "nuclear torpedo",’ said Viktor Mikhailov, junior navigator on Sub B-59. ‘At that time we couldn't even imagine a nuclear In a game of high stakes cat and mouse it wasn't long before the Russians were spotted. forced to make an emergency dive. Remembered: Arkhipov is pictured left with his wife Olga in 1957, and right with his daughter Yelena, three years before he died in 1998 Tense: For 13 days during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, the world held its breath as the USSR and the U.S. stood on the brink of nuclear war As the submariners tried to stay hidden from their US hunters, conditions in the sub deteriorated. week they stayed underwater, in sweltering 60C heat, rationed to just one glass of water a day.'Basically what we were trying to do was apply passive torture. Frankly I don't think we felt any sympathy for them at all. They were the enemy'Gary Slaughter, USS Cony signalman Above them, the U.S. navy were

'hunting by exhaustion' - trying to force the Soviet sub to come to the surface to recharge its batteries.They had no idea that on board the submarines were weapons capable of destroying the entire American fleet.Gary Slaughter, a signalman on board the USS Cony battleship, said: 'We knew they were probably havingIt was hot as hell in there, they were miserable. Mr President: John F. Kennedy was in office in the U.S. between 1961 and 1963, at the height of the crisis Tense: The documentary recreated the dramatic moment when Soviet sailors decided not to fire the weapon'They were cramped together and they had been under great stress for a long time. Basically what we were trying to do was apply passive torture. 'They said that the person who prevented a nuclear war was the Russian submariner Vasili Arkhipov. I was proud and I am proud of my husband always'Olga Arkipov, widow of Vasili Arkhipov 'Frankly I don't think we felt any sympathy for them at all.

They were the enemy.'The Americans decided to ratchet up the pressure, and dropped warning grenades into the sea. the Soviet submariners thought they were under attack. Valentin Savitsky, the captain of B59, was convinced the nuclear war had already started. He demanded that the submariners launch their torpedo to save some of Russia's pride. The programme on Channel 5 revealed how in any normal circumstances Savitsky's orders would have been followed, and World War Three would have been unleashed. 'Close friend': Ryurik Ketov, commander of Sub B-4, said Arkhipov was 'cool-headed' and 'in control' Memories: Viktor Mikhailov, junior navigator on Sub B-59, said they had a 'special weapon' on board, which was not even referred to as a 'nuclear weapon' Ryurik Ketov, commander of another sub, Sub B-4, said: ‘Vasili Arkhipov was a submariner and a close friend of mine. was a family friend. He stood out for being cool-headed. One of the Russian admirals told the submariners: "It would have been better if you'd gone down with your ship".

Savitsky hadn't counted onAs commander of the fleet, Arkhipov had the last veto. although his men were against him, he insisted that they must not fire -It was a humiliating move - but one that saved the world. The Soviet submariners were forced to return to their native Russia, where they were given the opposite of a hero's Historian Thomas Blanton told the Sun: 'What heroism, what duty, they fulfilled to go halfway across the world and come back, and survive. Covert mission: In a game of high stakes cat and mouse it wasn't long before the Russian's were spotted Proud: Arkopov's widow Olga said: 'I was proud and I am proud of my husband, always' 'But in fact, one of the Russian admirals told the submariners; "It would have been better if you'd gone down with your ship." Vasili Arkhipov was a submariner and a close friend of mine. He was a family friend. He was in control'Ryurik Ketov, commander of Sub B-4 Four decades passed before the story of what