The Somme Remembered (1st July 1916)

Below is a piece of writing that I typed up in commemoration of the centenary of the Battle of the Somme. Having watched the BBC documentary and coverage of the vigils taking place across Europe around this momentous date in history, I took note of the key words that were raised during this coverage and turned it into what you see below. I hope that what is written conveys a message of gratitude and unending respect for those who laid, and currently lay down their lives for their countries. Conflicts and death are difficult things to put into context and I hope that this goes someway to explore the consequences of such events.

Launched into the abyss

Volunteers scramble to fight for their countries

Subsequent devastation ensued

Prepared these young men were not

Trained not for the effects of what they were to see

Conscription to arms called upon

Frontlines were set up and barricaded

Pause for thought the night before

Reflect upon what might be and what has been

Glorious conception of glory

Sunset laid to rest a night of worry

Sacrifice was to be made for future generations

Watch concerned bodies take arms

Exposure to the thought of a quick victory

Anticipation of immediate surrender

Apprehension of the effectiveness of the siege before

Sorrowful of those friends already lost

Brink of the most memorable first day of a conflict to date

Commemorate tenfold the sacrifice made by millions

Unknown graves strewn across the fields of Europe

Unmarked fields become unannounced cemeteries

Magnitude of events unfolding

Horror on a scale never seen before

Impact widespread and for generations to come

Industrial Warfare became something of the present

Symbolizing the modernized construct of war

Perpetuity of those thousands mowed down by gunfire

Witness to the horrors of war on an unprecedented scale

Unique in its nature and in how it eclipsed all conflicts before

Wreaths laid to pay homage to the services given by that lost generation

Recorded by the next generation

Voiced by a torn apart generation

Broken voices spread far and wide

Crying families eternally separated from loved ones

Brutal reality begins to sink in for those back at home

Death was a constant companion

Crucifix corner became a key

Battlefields become commonplace across Europe

Mourning those who fall for the hope of peace

Loathsome consequences of the brutality of war

Ferocity of gunfire and shellfire

Effecting the future for years to come

Easing the pain knowing that comrades stayed together

Grave upon grave of innocent lives lost

Tombstones show lives cut short

Lost generations put to the sword

Morning came and spirits were high

Draped in blood drenched clothes

The fields of Ypres and the Somme became the focus of the war

80% casualties at High Wood became a sombre headline

Significance shown through the minutes of silent remembrance

Slain and laid to rest, young and old died side by side

Becoming symbols of a tested and unrequited love for one’s country

Lifeblood of a generation, honoured by those that followed

Welcomed home as heroes, living or deceased

Roses, bay leaves and poppies laid at their graves feet

Wounded by shrapnel and falling debris

Last Post sounded for all those fallen too soon

Guards stand watch over the graves surrounded by loved one’s flowers

Lawful abiding of silence to mourn

Save the sound of chirping birds to the scene of the setting sun

Lasting five months, the Battle of the Somme broke apart families in their thousands

A million casualties showing the power of will to carry on

Experience varied tenfold of those on the frontline

Vigils held across Europe

Signal a moment of advance in the peaceful coming together of nations

Courage and sacrifice shown in the faces and actions of men fighting for peace

Confront the enemy on their own doorstep so as to build a world at peace

Rise and fall throughout the ages, war disrupts global peace

Lives disappear through the hazy nature of the morning dew rising

Thick and murky smoke stem across the muddy, boggy fields

Spouts and splashes of colour became a thing of the past

Fields of beauty and colour become smudged with the horrors of war

Immense and terrible consequences

Ridges and gentle hills become battlegrounds

Pretty villages turned into scenes of utter devastation

Panting… each breath taken with a heavy heart and thrashing of one’s conscious

Messages sent home to announce to families their well-being and emotions

Peace in sight became somewhat of an insecure thought

Passions and ambitions of men remain at the fore

Separation becomes unbearable, thought of reconnection ignites belief

Peril from venturing into the unknown

Killed in a country not their own

Accounted for as another number on the casualty sheet

Lambs led to slaughter

Conquerors on foreign soil

Present day reflection on what came to pass

To come and see how the past defines the present

Love triumphs once the guns fall silent

Witness to unseen before chaos and terror

Vast scale destruction changing the face of European cities

Heartbreak throughout the ages

Blind optimism stretched far and wide across Kitchener’s Army

Ruling families sending factory boys, farmers, footballers and miners into conflict

Growth neutered for the duration of the war

A generation of young and old obliterated

Overwhelmed by the unpreparedness for machine gun fire

Pressure mounting on Britain to support France in pushing back Germany

Deadlock long lasting, characteristic of modern trench warfare

Existing to become pawns in a much larger diplomatic and military campaign

Continuous forays into enemy territory to determine the outcome of the war

Attrition became commonplace, movement and displacement blocked by mud, wire and trenches

Decisive defence against unrelenting bombardment and unforgiving assault

Defences trying to stand firm against a peppering of bullets and shells

Labyrinths created across the pastures of France and Europe

Compromised situations resulting from tactical mishaps

Pals battalion stood for something more than a generalised code of conduct

150 hours of bombardment led to a feeling of success already

Enduring such destruction and devastation, beauty was hard to come by

Splendid spirits soaked away into the morning abyss of a muddy wasteland

Staggering crescendo of whistles being blown

Successive lines of soldiers rose from the trenches

Steady advance they were told was all that was required

Over the top, they were met with the deafening sound of machine gun fire

Friends mowed down in front and next to one another

Within miles of their destination, thousands lay stranded breathing their last

The ‘Great War’ they call it, but it was nothing but great

Fearful beginning leading to a watchful, yet concerning conclusion

We stand and salute the courage of all men and women who served and still serve

Poets find the right words to put into context the horrors and reality of battles and suffering

Homeland becomes something of a dream for those on the frontline

Tears and blood of those mourning the loss of their friends and family

Reconciliation over a game of football, realising it was a game of ideologies

Prayers were said and yet some remained unanswered

Never endure the suffering again they pledged, though plunged into war 30 years later

Companions became best friends who actively and boldly put their bodies on the line

For a century ago, the bloodiest morning ever unfolded

Across the nation, moving services and moments of silence held to pay tribute

Trials became tribulations which led to a period of mourning, of peaceful respite

Honour the dead for they lay down their lives so that you could be free from tyranny

The service they gave their country seeking nothing in return

Humble servants living to serve their country to save it from destruction

Power was invested in them to guide Europe to a better and brighter future

Testament to their actions and the human will to never give up and never forget

Missing victims, though unnamed with unmarked graves, are remembered at Thiepval

A sense of duty duly remembered

Wonderful epitaphs express the emotions and gratitude from the current generations

Thanking the togetherness and comradeship of everyone included in a conflict never forgotten

Poignant and powerful voices ring out in memory of all those who prematurely fell

Abundant extinguished flames, smoked out for all to remember

A testament to a youth with no fear and a will to protect their country

Memories and stories that will last across the generations

In hope that one day, peace will become a constant.

Jonathan Whitehead