Poem ~ Notebook Will - Monday, 13 March 1916

Impression sketch for Notebook Will - by Jamie.

26 May 1915, in a small little known

Quarter of the frontline, about sector

Of the Somme, 800 French soldiers

Held onto a line of a German trench.

Over two days they held firm

To the captured ditch - casualties

Amid their numbers built - from

Out of 15 officers six were killed.

Another five officers disabled

'Hors de combat' - as hours went

On two officers were standing,

One being Lieutenant Luquiaud.

Sergeant Poupard and Lieutenant

Luquiaud were side by side, about

Them, men under fire of shrapnel

Shells, resiliently stood and fought.

Within a moment the Lieutenant

Was hit, as a fragment cut his face -

He dropped and Sergeant Poupard

Aided him to see the fatal wound.

Shrapnel had sliced away nearly

All his face, to leave his eyes and

Forehead - Poupard acted quickly

Binding a bandage to severe wound.

The Sergeant carried him to rear

Of the trench, to sit with him while

He lay dying - as the fight raged

On, men came and went about them.

By pained gesture the lieutenant 

Made it known he wanted to be able

To write - the sergeant put a pencil

In his grasp along with a notebook.

Still to feel the full shock of the terrible

Wound, Luquiaud had yet to lose

His breathe, as he scribbled out his

Thanks to those who fought with him.

To write his family name Luquiaud, his

Home Bellevue, Sommieres - asked to

Tell his parents he did his duty - when

He started to struggle with the pencil.

Gasps of throaty blood, began to stain

His marks, as Poupard beside him saw

That he wrote, 'I die content' - with

Witness he turned to last page but one.

His fingers flexed the pencil lead

'Do not carry me away' - Luquiaud

Felt the heaving effort, but still he wrote;

'The Boche will take the trench.'

Holding onto those last few seconds

Luquiaud traced words, to leave

500 francs to his village and 500

For Sergeant Poupard beside him.

by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1916. Dying Officer's Will. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 13 March 1916. P.5. Col.2-3. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/12189280/Daily-Telegraph-March-13-1916.html [Accessed: 13 March 2016].

Mann, J., 2016. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 13 March 2016). 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/12189280/Daily-Telegraph-March-13-1916.html

http://worldwaroneblogger.blogspot.co.uk/

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Poem ~ Lance-Corporal Keyworth V.C. - Monday , 12 July 1915

Impression sketch of Lance Corporal Leonard James Keyworth VC 1/24th County of London Bn (The Queen's)

 - by Jamie. See the original at: http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/vc/vc06.html

Amid crowds of fellow Khaki,

Coming through Victoria Station -

5 pm on 11 July - was Lance-

Corporal Leonard James

Keyworth, on 7 days home leave.

In only a few hours journey

From the front - his uniform bore

Stains of frontline mud.

Torn in parts - but was pinned

With a piece of scarlet ribbon.

On route home, Lance Corporal

Keyworth paused in London,

For a special event on 12 July -

To be invested at Buckingham

Palace by the King for the VC.

The man of 22, with the 24th

County of London Battalion,

Was to be awarded for bravery

From the night of 25-26 May,

At Givenchy, during an assault.

With success of 24th Londoners,

The plan was to follow up with

A bomb attack - the unit total

Of 75 men - James Keyworth

VC, told modestly of his story.

Prior to Givenchy the Lance-

Corporal and his mates had

Already been 'bloodied' - from

Festubert - in a tight situation

They had experience of fire.

Date; 25 May found them in

Billets behind lines when given

Orders - they were to move -

Likelihood to be in a charge,

But where, was then unknown.

By 6 p.m. they arrived, ready

In communication trenches.

By 6.30 p.m. they were to go

Over the top - with Keyworth

A bomber in the 9th Platoon.

Up, then out over the parapet,

To face German machine guns.

Five from ten men fell, to leave

Half a dozen men - the fact did

Not deter their fighting spirit.

One of the first shot was their

Officer Lieutenant Mobberly -

Refusing to go back he charged

With them, to the right of the hill

As another bullet hit his leg.

Using his rifle as a crutch,

The Lieutenant kept on move,

Urging the men on, to hold

The hill until C Company came;

They headed to the Germans.

Keyworth found himself left

As the only bomber - he told

How everything became a hot

Blur - he did not think, he did

Not care, other than his duty.

He bombed and made damage,

As the Germans bombed back.

Other acts he saw was Captain

Figg, who threw back a German

Bomb - all fought in distinction.

'Neck or nothing' - no thoughts.

'Neck or nothing' - all about him

Filled with pluck to stir them all

As Lieutenant Chance lost

His name - 'Neck or nothing.'

Keyworth climbed up the hill -

Stood alone others though fed

Him bombs - as he threw

Each one, about him slaughter

Built, as he added to the mass.

In facing the German parapet

Young Keyworth threw bomb

After bomb - without shelter,

Exposed, aware of sniper's

Bullets missing, to hit others.

Earth flew about, blinding

Him - as a fragment flying

Past his ear - a shot stopped

By his pocket mirror case -

Vaguely aware of shouts.

'Get down!' As they tried

To build protection of sand

Bags - but they were killed

Or wounded, as he stood

Seemingly immune to all.

Across a passage of strange

Time,flashing by - amounting

Over two hours, as Keyworth

Threw endlessly - counting

A hundred and fifty bombs.

With pride to be in Queens,

Keyworth's reply to get his

VC is fine how all were brave.

At a recruiting concert this

Man met a rousing reception.

by Jamie Mann.

Anon.,1915. Territorial V.C. - London Hero's Story of a Fight on a Parapet. The Daily Telegraph, [online] 12 July. P.10. Col.4. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11731998/Daily-Telegraph-July-12-1915.html [Accessed: 12 July 2015].

Source: File: Leonard James Keyworth. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [online] Available at: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_James_Keyworth> [Accessed: 13 July 2015].

Source: File: Lance Corporal Leonard James Keyworth VC

1/24th County of London Bn (The Queen's). The Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment. [online] Available at: <http://www.queensroyalsurreys.org.uk/vc/vc06.html> [Accessed: 13 July 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 12 July 2015). 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ww1-archive/11731998/Daily-Telegraph-July-12-1915.html

http://worldwaroneblogger.blogspot.co.uk/

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Poem ~ Julian Grenfell: The Fighting Man - Wednesday, 26 May 1915

 Impression sketch of young Julian Grenfell, his mother Ettie Desborough and Billy, his younger brother- by Jamie. Within a few weeks Billy Grenfell would be killed in action within a mile where Julian had received his fatal wound.

The original can be seen at: http://www.persephonebooks.co.uk/julian-grenfell.html

i 

The first boy born London 30 March 1888

To William and Ettie Grenfell  - Julian

To be joined by his younger brother Billy;

Their parents an athlete and a socialite.

An image posed them with their mother;

On either shoulder, leans her languid boys

As cherub ideals with hair of golden locks;

The close three look to different directions.

The Buckinghamshire boys found their home

At Taplow Court  - their parents a sportsman

And society hostess, moved with the circles

Of souls, of artistic and intellectual groups.

As a boy Julian Grenfell loved his outdoor

Existence - by response to nature he drew

And wrote poetry - doting on his horses

And dogs, to rebel against mother’s wishes.

An angelic rebel fought against a ‘social pet’

Status - at Summerfields and Eton, Julian

Reached golden boy heights and became

Able at rowing, reading - to hunt, and laugh.

He boxed and gained greyhounds - to write

With contributions to publications, hinting

At his ability for writing – a popular student

Julian was aggressive and charming bully.

In contradictions of his character he wrote

Verse: as an ode to greyhound - to hate

Of aesthetes – who he attacked at night

Out in the quad, by use of his horsewhip.

While his education suffered from illness

And overworked affairs and rejected ideas,

Only gave a pass degree - after his father,

His sports built into him a fine physique.

Possibly as a shadow of a Byronic figure,

The hunt bred a desire for him to take part

In hunting humans and to a military career -

As he kept critical of his mothers circles.

With instability of relationships, the rebel

Frustrated by all, in 1910 joined Royal

Dragoons and became posted to India;

The rebel finally found his cause in 1914.

From Indian to Africa Julian wrote and drew

When he thought perhaps to leave army -

Yet his family did not encourage their boy

To lead any ambitions for an artist's life.

Then when war broke and opened his spirit

Again renewing the outdoor life, held him

Firm and fond for men dogs and horses  -all

Seemed fine to stand for the cause of war.

With lightness of courage for rising Captain

Julian Grenfell took out actions of individual

Reconnaissance, leading to gain a DSO -

And into 1915 came mention in despatches.

ii

Captain Grenfell kept his refusal for

For an ADC post - to be reasoned

By shortages of officers - this soldier

Poet equally gave his light to both.

He stood out with 'gung ho' approach

He lived up to the short expectancy

Of an officer's survival at the front -

Duty came 13 May for eager Captain.

Julian out monitor enemy movements

Of troops - within a moment a splinter

Strayed from a shell - metal struck him

In the head From 13 may for 13 days

  

This poet soldier having lived wild by

Pen and sword then died of wounds -

Sat at his side with his sister, a Red

Cross Nurse and parents as he died.

A little time before Julian Grenfell

Had written his own epitaph - in time

Of confusion, waiting to move up

To the front at Ypres he spoke easy -

Equally of his devotion for the natural

World of warm earth and glorying sun,

A desire to fight for these elements by

Kestrel, blackbird and woodland’s call

In his apprehension of waiting to go

All such joy charged him well for joy

Of going into battle, unknowingly met

The embrace of night’s soft wings.

To lay in the hills above Boulogne

While Into Battle published for the

First time, that announced his death.

by Jamie Mann.

Source: File: Julian Grenfell. [online] Available at: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Grenfell> [Accessed: 26 May 2015].

Source: File: War Poets Association Julian Grenfell. [online] Available at: <http://www.warpoets.org/poets/julian-grenfell-1888-1915/> [Accessed: 26 May 2015].

Source: File: Poetry Foundation. Julian Grenfell1888-1915. [online] Available at: < http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/julian-grenfell> [Accessed: 26 May 2015].

Mann, J., 2015. 100 years Ago - Poems by Jamie Mann. [letter] (Personal communication, 26 May 2015). 

http://worldwaroneblogger.blogspot.co.uk/

#WW1 #WW1centenary #GreatWar #WW1poem #GreatWar #WW1centenary #worldwarone #worldwaroneremembered #WW1poets