This year marks the centenary of the Battle of the Somme which claimed the lives of many thousands of soldiers from all sides of the conflict. What follows does not do justice to the sacrifices made by all the victims of that horrendous war, but I hope th


A short history of the Great War in five haiku

1914
Sights of summertime,
boys in fields, early harvest,
listen, a gunshot.

1915
Clouds over Ypres,
gas...gas...gas...gas...gas...gas...gasp,
shrouds over Ypres.

1916
Kitchener is dead,
your country still needs you though,
more poppies sign up.

1917
Uncle Sam is here,
yanks and tanks will turn the tide,
one last push, eh?

1918
Pens spike guns at last,
old men agree bullet points,
sow seeds of next war.



Haiku by Christopher Fernie The PoetBay support member heart!
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Written on 2016-06-15 at 11:10

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shells
I enjoy Haiku, you have done an excellent job portraying the difficult subject of war.My husbands father was in the Somme, injured, but survived.
2016-06-17



Gorgeous. The use of the haiku fits perfectly as it is the least sentimental of poetic forms. The sparse nature of the haiku really elevates the poem. A job well done.
2016-06-15