keith jeffries

The Damned - 1916

by keith jeffries

Tuesday 16th October 2018 9:39 am (first posted Monday 15th October 2018 9:34 pm)

The Damned - 1916

In the darkness of a freezing night

illuminated by flares and the thunder of guns

they fell into ankle deep mud to smoke a pipe

or hope for some food before the rodents ate it all

They had no comfort, little hope in a foreign field

holes, trenches dug by their fellow countrymen, now gone

to offer a shield from the torment of the enemy

from an unrelenting hell on earth

They held dear to the past as any future did not exist

rats ate the entrails of dead comrades

all were denied sleep or little respite

a putrid stench, indescribeable, pervaded their dug outs

Far away the generals luxuriated in their guaranteed comfort

Courses of food graced their tables with fine wine to boot

assured of clean sheets and beds to sleep in

their privilege was a right of birth and class

Never again must we endure this crap

an evil ploy sanctioned by a political class

let those who began this debacle

fight alongside those those they deemed inferior

and struggle through their shit to their own aristocratic shame

To hell with war fought by proxy

🌷(7)

◄ A Gallery of Memories

A Glorious Power ►

Comments

M.C. Newberry

Fri 19th Oct 2018 16:01

Keith - in a general (no pun intended) sense, I can't argue
against your point but hasn't that been a feature of history
since time immemorial? Even today, when aristocracy per
se doesn't call the tune/sound the bugle, its modern
successors, the politicians follow their own agendas with vital powerful influences provided by rich chums when
it suits them - and when they can bamboozle the public
into believing in the cause they seek to espouse. And so
combatants are once again obliged to moil in the mud...
or sand!!

keith jeffries

Thu 18th Oct 2018 19:02

Your words and and comments are highly respected. But the bloke in the trenches had no luxuries and died for no good reason at all other than to satiate the greed and ambition of aristocrats.

Keith

M.C. Newberry

Thu 18th Oct 2018 11:31

A referral to my late father's copy of "The Fifth Division
In The Great War" published just after the conflict, and to
which, as a member of 1st btn/DCLI, he was attached, I am honour-bound to add the rank of Lt. Colonel to front
line casualties. And even as late as September 1918, the
above history noted that "The Division had been fighting
almost continuously since 21st August, during which time
it had advanced close on 14 miles. The casualties had
been severe - 210 Officers and 4085 Other Ranks...no less than 10 commanding officers having been killed or wounded.".
Undoubtedly, the high rate of attrition among officers saw
field commissions and the promotion of able non-coms
to take the place of lost officers. My own father was the
temporary brigade intelligence officer at the age of 19!!
Carry on the good work with your WW1 items.

keith jeffries

Wed 17th Oct 2018 23:58

Thank you all.
Keith

M.C. Newberry

Wed 17th Oct 2018 21:24

Keith - re. Sassoon - you may recall a mention elsewhere by me of his poem (and my personal WW1 favourite) "The General" in which he sardonically summed up the gulf
between commander and commanded.
As for the front line officers, these were mostly up to
and including the rank of major and no doubt there are a
notable number of them scattered across the memorials and cemetery headstones, here and on the other side of the Channel.

Big Sal

Wed 17th Oct 2018 16:34

This would make a humbling inscription in a museum next to a plaque.

But I'm sure you already knew that. . .

Excellent piece.?

keith jeffries

Wed 17th Oct 2018 16:09

MC.,

Even Sassoon criticised a military elite who enjoyed luxury whilst the average tommy took the brunt. We speak of an age which bears little resemblance to the world of today. The Great War was a war fought between monarchs who were related to each other and happy to send their troops into a futile war in their names. Your King and Country needs you¨. The Kaiser was an expanionist as was the Austrian Emperor. The bloke in the street was the lamb to the slaughter. Many subalterns led charges but where were their commanding officers? How many of their names do we find on War Memorials? Few!

Thank you for your comment
Keith

M.C. Newberry

Wed 17th Oct 2018 14:20

The place of generals out of the line of fire appears to be
a fairly recent phenomenon, bearing in mind the likes of
the Earl of Cardigan leading the Charge of the Light
Brigade, and US Civil War generals doing likewise - Pickett's
Charge at Gettysburg etc. As for "class" being a factor,
it can be forgotten that many of those young officers
leading their troops "over the top" and dying in the process
were from what is termed a privileged background nowadays, including the offspring of the generals themselves. Duty was a sacrosanct word for that generation...lest we forget.
RIP - 2nd Lieut. E.V. Venner
The Rifle Brigade - killed in action
18 August 1916 Delville Wood - age
24.

<Deleted User> (19836)

Wed 17th Oct 2018 07:14

Keith, I always find your writing profound but this piece is extraordinary. You bring to light the unfairness which is that one man's life has more value than another because of rank. Sad but truthful! Well done. ? Jane

Taylor Crowshaw

Tue 16th Oct 2018 21:32

Very moving Keith thank you..?

Jemima Jones

Tue 16th Oct 2018 10:36

No disrespect to the great war poets but this amazingly moving albeit very sad poem about the shameful period/s in our history, in my opinion, deserves very much to stand alongside theirs. Fantastic Keith. Thank you. Jemima.

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