They Had No Choice Poem by Malcolm Bradshaw

A hush fell over the battlefield,
Men sighed a sigh of relief,
In the distance the guns were heard,
So their silence was but brief,
Huddled in their trenches,
With gun fire all around,
Soldiers stood together,
Fighting for a piece of ground,


Pounded by shells and shrapnel,
Their days ran into night,
There nerves all were shattered,
Their faces ashen and white,
Heroes each and everyone,
Although they had no choice,
They just obeyed orders,
For in battle they had no voice.

No feeling any sense of time,
As they stood in there filthy pits,
No reaction anymore,
As there friends were blown to bits,
Many lives were lost,
In those trenchers filled with squalor,
Then over the top the whistle blew,
A signal for all to follow.

No sleep for those brave men,
But a nightmare for everyone,
They fought on their instincts,
Those soldiers of the SOMME,
Wars will come and wars will go,
And wars that have long since gone,
Have we leant anything?
From those soldiers on the SOMME.

Their thoughts of home and loved ones,
Of those who were left behind,
Would they ever see them?
These thing were on their minds,
The families at home were brave,
As they read the awful news,
Waiting for that telegram,
To see if a loved one they would lose.

There are no winners in battle,
Only sadness and sorrow it brings,
The cream of our youth,
Wiped out over foolish things,
We remember all lost in conflict,
And share their family’s grief,
We pray brother will trust brother,
And strive for everlasting peace,

To all those lost in battle
Those sons and daughters live on,
For they have moved to the spirit land,
Those soldiers of the SOMME,
War destroys the material,
Though it may cause sorrow and pain,
We know that life is continuous,
And our loved ones we will meet again.