The Angels of Mons
A First World War Legend
On August 26, 1914, the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was in retreat, pulling back from Mons (a city in southwestern Belgium, near Brussels). Not only were the troops greatly outnumbered, but they were exhausted. A German cavalry unit was in hot pursuit. The BEF tried to get to a place where they could make a stand, but they were met by German troops.
It would appear that the BEF was doomed, when suddenly a strange apparition appeared in the sky between the British and German troops: a group of angels!
Several reports of that day's events describe three angels wearing long robes, illuminated by a bright light. The one in the middle was the largest and had a pair of wings. Some accounts describe phantom cavalrymen appearing, and some soldiers fighting on the German side reported that they had refused to charge a break in the British line because of the large number of troops observed. (The British have stated that there were no soldiers in that area at the time.)
It is interesting to note that any accounts of what took place at Mons were done anonymously. Several second-hand reports are available, though. Perhaps the army personnel didn't wish to appear mentally unbalanced, especially in the case of a brigadier general who shared his experience with an army chaplain.
Was this merely a wartime legend, a mass hallucination, or a mirage? It's difficult to say for certain, but the fact remains that for some reason, the German pursuit was halted, allowing the BEF to live to fight another day.
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