Tuesday, 1 December 2015

Poem ~ Nurses Escape Salonika - Wednesday, 1 December 1915


Source: File: Hospital work in Serbia. jpeg, [online] Available at: <http://www.inverclydeww1.org/topics/women-at-war> Accessed: 1 December 2015].

To provide assistance to Serbian forces
Against Bulgarian forces, two brigades
Of Franco-British troops landed Salonica,
In October 1915 - prompted by prime
Minister of Greece - only to arrive too late.

From out of the situation, two nurses
Of the Red Cross told their tales -
Salonica 30 November, to arrive there
With nothing but clothes they wore -
All kit left abandoned on Prizrend road.

The English nurse, sister Miss Lewis
Along with miss Annandale - South
African Matron - were in a Red Cross
Unit, attached to Second Serbian army -
That had defended Serbian town Pirot.

Despite the town likely to fall to forces
Of Bulgaria, the nurses wanted to stay
With the wounded, but a commander
Insisted they leave with the retreating
Army - to abandon all injured soldiers.

They left with the retreat, the day prior
To Pirot's fall to all Bulgarian forces -
Annandale and Lewis told of bravery
Of Serbs - where wounded conveyed
In bullock carts made no complaints.

The matron could not forget the harsh
Manner of retreat, with six members
Of the Red Cross unit - in their running
Short of food had at one point, a single
Small black loaf shared between them.

To reach Libra - where Naval detachment
Of the British, shared out their rations.
Behind them they had left all equipment;
Tents worth £1000 and instruments
Of £300 - along with all the transport cars.

On that road of retreat, the Red Cross
Unit saw and passed the littered dead
And wounded - without a possibility to
Help them - such experiences decided
Their assistance to help in the Balkans.

by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1915. The Retreat from Invaded Serbia - Heroic Serb Wounded. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 1 December. P.9. Col.2. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/12019592/Daily-Telegraph-December-1-1915.html [Accessed: 1 December 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 1 December 2015). 



#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1Serbia

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