I Stood With the Dead

I Stood with the Dead, so forsaken and still:

When dawn was grey I stood with the Dead.

And my slow heart said, 'You must kill, you must kill:

'Soldier, soldier, morning is red'.

On the shapes of the slain in their crumpled disgrace

I stared for a while through the thin cold rain...

'O lad that I loved, there is rain on your face,

'And your eyes are blurred and sick like the plain.

' I stood with the Dead ... They were dead; they were dead;

My heart and my head beat a march of dismay:

And gusts of the wind came dulled by the guns.

'Fall in!' I shouted; 'Fall in for your pay!'

Siegfried Sassoon

"eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month".

Whilst I remember and respect those who gave their lives in two world wars and since, I can never forget that famous quotation fron Clausewitz "War is the continuation of politics by other means" It's the politicians who make wars but the poor bloody soldiers who have to fight them

Very fitting Iain.

Someday I need to visit these places on the continent.

They say that for years after the US Civil War the ground remained spongy from so many lost and unremembered bodies buried on the fields where they fell.

In those days there was no agency to handle military burials so they were buried on the spot, often several weeks after the battle. Probably the same as across Europe...

Over the years most of the remains were reinterred in appropriate cemeteries but as you know well living in Europe, they still find unmarked graves to this day. (Thankfully we don't plow up canisters of mustard gas here!)

I often visit the cemeteries in places like Gettysburg, Antietam (where my grandmother's grandfather served)and Fredricksburg and even here in upstate New York there is a National Cemetery where 2,963 Confederate soldiers lie after perishing in the Elmira prison camp.

Thank you for remembering the people who allow me to live free today.

the meaning of the white poppy over the red is that the white poppy remembers ALL the dead of the wars, both those who were in service in the wars, and the civilians who were casualties of those wars. By extending remembrance to include all casualties the white poppy stands for a hope for peace.

As long as nations and cultures are granted freedom and means to communicate the chances of war are diminished. My dad didnt speak any english, nor did he have any way to communicate to France and Russia where he fought for what he believed to be the right side.

In my eyes communication is the key.

To this day I cannot comprehend how anyone could morally justify promoting war and war itself. That behavior disgusts me to the core, and makes it difficult for me to pick up a poppy on days like Remembrance Day, even though I would like to show my respects for all the fallen. It just takes one person who would use examples of past atrocities to justify present and future aggressions to make me refuse wearing a poppy.

Although, I think I can understand the position of people such as your father, Damnam1, and my intention is not to be so inconsiderate and comment about world events that have not affected me since I wasnt old enough (or even born) to grasp them. I am merely referring to the present.

Day early Iain!

Sam, it's perhaps different for you as your (presumably Swedish) ancestors remained neutral during WWII, but for those of us whose countries were involved it's almost obligatory to remember those who made the greatest sacrifice of all for the sake of liberty. It's equalyy true of the Thai people who suffered terribly under the Japanese invaders as it is of the Poilish people who had a horrific experience under Nazi occupation. I do not mean to denigrate your nation, which I know to be peaceable and very democratic (in many ways more so than the UK or USA) and is one of my own country's EU partners, but remembering those who fell is, I believe, a long way removed from glorifying war. I have never been associated with any military organisation and I spent my entire working life in a totally peaceful field, but that doesn't prevent me from remembering those who gave their lives to defeat the threats to the democracy I hope we all hold dear.

Well said Peter.

In spite of what Hollywood says, we all hate war.

iamsamtoo - you have obviously not read my post completely - I promote the wearing of the white poppy which commemorates ALL the dead of wars, civilian and military and hopes for peace. It in no way justifies or glorifies war.

Treborz - 'posted 11th November' - a day early how?

It wasn't the 11th where you posted it from!

Iain_D - I did read it all, and I understand that it is about paying respects to ALL the victims, whether they were in uniform or not. But as i mentioned, i have trouble supporting anything that commemorates soldiers, whether as a group, such as in this case, or just by themselves, as with the red poppies. Apologies for not expressing myself well enough.