Source: File: Telegraph
map of the Somme battlefield, showing line before advance. See an original
image at: <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/12211684/Daily-Telegraph-July-3-1916.html>
[Accessed 04 July 2016]
By the 3rd day on
3 July,
News was
strangely wary -
Though truth was
hinted
By page 2 of the
Daily
Telegraph, with 'Roll
Of Honour.'
Starting with 2
columns,
Continued on page
3, were
Lists of 'killed', 'missing,'
'Died of wounds,'
'Accidentally killed'
Or 'drowned.'
With an initial
total of 7
Columns, 2 more appeared
Amid sales of dresses and
Lingerie - in
neat
Of 1490 Men
NCOs,
And 136 Officers.
By page 9, above
A map, came admittance
Of a big fight to
state;
'Great Anglo-French
Offensive -
advance
Of 20 miles.'
Amid the overall
view,
News spread like 'wildfire,'
Across the London capital
On
Saturday morning,
And throughout
And throughout
The day.
Gatherings on
London
Street corners made excited
Discussions, as people
Devoured papers; the
Vendors running
Out of stock.
Amid thrilled
civilians
Stood out keener soldiers,
Along with
wounded
Khaki figures, calling
'Breakthrough!' from
Tops of buses.
Officially, every
aspect
Of events about
the Somme
Were good - despatches
Told of combined
attacks,
Launched at 7.30
a.m.
Saturday 1 July.
Giving equality
between
The two countries
offensive,
Across a 25 mile north
Front - French
moved
On Hardecourt and
Curlu villages.
While in the
south Fay,
Becquincourt,
Dompierre
And Bussu were
taken -
As 3500 Germans
over
The day were caught
By French.
This number of prisoners
Were to exceed
5000 - during
Night of day 1 into
day 2,
Avocourt and
Assewillers
In south area were
A success.
During that time
in North,
Fights had
intensified about
Hardecourt as
Germans
Counter attacked
- but
Returned fire forced
Retreats.
The overview of
the
First phase was reported rosy -
Pictures of allied
troops
Sweeping over Enemy -
Avoiding all
deadly
Reality.
This was the fourth army -
Not individual soldiers, scythed
Like a summers cornfield;
Like a summers cornfield;
Kitchener’s battalions
Of pals lost, in a large
Scaled acts of murder.
The truth lay
behind an
Army of reporters
- whose
Controlled words skirted
Reality - censorship
Gave overall
image
Of successes.
Friendly propaganda,
Only ever alluded
to truth -
With lines of
black
Ink headings, as in
'Our Wonderful
Wounded.'
by Jamie Mann.
Anon.,1916. Daily Telegraph 1 July 1916. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 3 July. Available at: <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/12211684/Daily-Telegraph-July-3-1916.html>
[Accessed: 4 July 2016].
Mann, J., 2016. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal
communication, 4 July 2016).
#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary
#worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1Somme
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