Friday, 9 January 2015

Poem ~ Spy Stories - Saturday, 9 January 1915


A Catholic French Priest - in role of teacher
At Walmer - informs his family at Chambery,
Of his encounter with a German spy –
At Deal, Naval Hospital, Kent, the priest
Made a visit, to wounded Belgian soldiers.

Among these men he met a sergeant -
An intelligent and expert draughtsman -
On leaving the Hospital as a convalescent
The sergeant took a transfer to Folkestone,
Where he met the priest once again.

The sergeant lay under cloud of depression,
Telling how his children Wife and Father
Had been shot by Germans - the tragedy,
This, he stated, came from a friend at Liege –
The man, being in an agitated state, vowed
He would kill any German he encountered.

A week later, again at the Naval Hospital,
The priest spoke to a nurse who asked
If he recalled how he had taken an interest
In the wounded Belgian man - whose
Profession had been a draughtsman.
The nurse informed him how the man had
Been taken to Calais, three days previously.

At the port the Sergeant was then proved
To be a fraud, when he faced the actual
Belgium soldier - whose true identity,
History, papers and name, he had taken.
Being proved a spy he was promptly shot.

Another spy tale came from Bordeaux -
Willy Sattler was German but spoke good
Fluent French – in Paris he frequented
The war office and when the government
Moved to Bordeaux, he followed.

While precautions had been made to curb
Any possible deeds of spies - Willy Slater
Gained entry into where Ministry of War -
Then based in Faculty Of Letters - caught,
It turned out that Willy Sattler was in fact
A NCO in 79th German Infantry Regiment.
Court-martialled, he was sentenced to death.

by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1915. Enterprising Spies – Caught and Shot. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 9 Jan. P.10. Col 7. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11331132/Daily-Telegraph-January-9-1915.html [Accessed: 9 January 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 9 January 2015). 



#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #ww1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered

No comments:

Post a Comment