Steve Glover, Historian and Public Relations Executive of the Royal Canadian Barrie Legion in Canada, is organising an event about Canada's involvement in WW1 in April 2023

Steve Glover, Historian and Public Relations Executive of the Royal Canadian Barrie Legion in Canada, is organising an event about Canada's involvement in WW1 in April 2023. Steve is planning to launch the republishing of a volume of poetry written by Canadian WW1 soldier poet Frank P. Dixon (1898 – 1918), who was killed in WW1.  

The poems were published by Frank’s grieving Mother in 1937 in a book  entitled, “War-Time Memories in Verse” – there were 40 pages and it was privately printed.  I found out about the book through reading one of Frank P. Dixon’s poems – “Cigarettes” – posted on Twitter and began to try to find out more about him.  My research led me to The Brandon Legionnaire Newsletter – 2 April 2021

https://www.brandonlegion.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/2021-Legionnaire-April.pdf

That link brought me to the Barrie Legion 147 Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/legion147  The Legion mentioned that they were hoping to reprint Frank’s poetry collection.   I sent them a message regarding a reprint and that brought me into contact with Steve Glover, Barrie Legion Branch Historian, who, in turn put me in touch with Frank’s Great-niece.  And that resulted in the republishing of Frank’s poems. 

The volume is available via:

http://www.poshupnorth.com/2022/12/war-time-memories-in-verse-frank-p-dixon.html

also on Amazon

https://www.amazon.co.uk/War-Time-Memories-Verse-overseas-Signaller/dp/1909643521

Barrie Legion 147 Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/legion147

The Royal Canadian Legion Br. 147 (in Barrie) is open Monday thru Friday (11:30am til 8:00pm)  The Legion street address is:   410 St. Vincent Street Barrie, Ontario Canada L4M 4A6

Joseph Ithel Jehu Davies (1894 - 1916) – RWF - WW1 soldier poet

 With thanks to Nick Lock, Trustee and Chair of the Management Committee of the Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum in Wales, who came across a reference to a poem written by Joseph Ithel Jehu Davies, a Lieutenant in the 1st Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers. The poem was included in a new Great War exhibition at the Welshpool Museum. 

Joseph Ithel Jehu Davies was born on 10th August 1894 in Ty Coch, Welshpool, Wales. . His parents were Joseph Henry Davies and his wife, Sarah E. Davies, nee Morris.  He studied at Armstrong College, Newcastle University. 

When war broke out, Joseph was  commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on 16th December 1914 into the 11th Bn of the Royal Welsh Fudiliers* and was was attached to the 12th Bn for a period. He was gazetted (27/5/16) - 2/Lt transferred to the 8th Bn, then attached to the 1st Bn in France. 

During the battle for Guillemont, Joseph was killed in the attack on Ginchy on 3rd September 1916 at the age of 22. At the time of his death, Joseph held the rank of Lieutenant and was in command of “E” Company of the First Battalion of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers.  He was buried in Delville Wood Cemy, Longueval, France and is also remembered on Welshpool’s War Memorial in St. Mary’s churchyard. 

Joseph Ithel Jehu Davies is also remembered on a marble plaque originally on display in the Presbyterian Church, Mount Street, now housed in New Street United Church.

“Les Heros”

On the battle-scared plains of north France,

Are our heroes who never knew fear

Their spirits buoyed up by the chance,

That the end of the conflict is near.

Their strong faith in their tryst ne’er grows dim,

Through the strife has been fierce and long

For they know in the end they must win

In the battle of Right against Wrong.

And often the tale has been told

Of deeds that are noble and brave,

How many a hero lies cold

Through trying a comrade to save.

Their deeds through the empire shall ring,

Long after the struggle shall cease,

And we of their glory will sing,

And think how their last rest is – Peace.

* The Royal Welch Fusiliers (In Welsh: Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, founded in 1689 shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and became The Welch Regiment of Fusiliers; the prefix "Royal" was added in 1713, then confirmed in 1714 when George I named it The Prince of Wales's Own Royal Regiment of Welsh Fusiliers. After the 1751 reforms that standardised the naming and numbering of regiments, it became the 23rd Foot (Royal Welsh Fuzileers).

The Regiment retained the archaic spelling of Welch, instead of Welsh, and Fuzileers for Fusiliers; these were engraved on swords carried by regimental officers during the Napoleonic Wars. After the 1881 Childers Reforms, its official title was The Royal Welsh Fusiliers, but "Welch" continued to be used informally until restored in 1920 by Army Order No.56.

From Jonathon Riley: http://generalship.org/military-history-articles/llewellyn-wyn-griffith.html

NOTE from Nick Lock - The cap badge shown is that of The Royal Welsh which is the successor regiment to the RWF. The Royal Welsh were formed in 2006 from an amalgamation of the Royal Welch Fusiliers and the Royal Regiment of Wales. The new regiment observes many of the customs and traditions of the RWF such as the white hackle and Flash worn on the back of the uniform collar. The Royal Welsh are also rightly proud of the literary record of their antecedent regiment.

The Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum is a museum dedicated to the history of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, a historic regiment of the British Army. The museum is located within Caernarfon Castle in Caernarfon, Gwynedd, North Wales. Admission is included with entry to the castle.

Caernarfon Castle,Castle Ditch, Caernarfon LL55 2AY

Other Sources:  Find my Past and

https://www.cwgc.org/find/find-war-dead

https://www.christchurchwelshpool.co.uk/remembering-the-fallen-of-the-great-war-joseph-ithel-jehu-davies/

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/newcastle-university-students-uncover-stories-8051668

http://www.newmp.org.uk/detail.php?contentId=8245

http://www.universitiesatwar.org.uk/explore/davies-joseph-ithel-jehu

A poem entitled “Sursum Corda” that Australian soldier Ernest William Wood (°1897, Brisbane, Australia) kept with him during the First World War but WHO wrote it

 With thanks to WW1 Digger Stories and Pamela Blevins on Twitter for their help in trying to find the identity of the author of this poem  and to Cathy Sedgwick who found several other poems with the same title that were published during WW1

Australian soldier Ernest William Wood joined the army at the age of 19. He fought in Northern France and Belgium. On 20th October 1917 he was wounded at Broodseinde. Ernest survived the war and died in 1963. Some of his personal possessions can be seen at the Australian country show. (collection MMP1917, MZ 06807)

The poem, entitled "Sursum Corda" was written by someone with the initials V.M. It was published in the Brisbane, Australia newspaper “The Week” on 27th July 1917 – page 17.  It was also published in the "Brisbane Telegraph" on Wednesday, 25th July 1917 on page 8. 

I found several poems with the same title published pre WW1 – the most famous arguably being by American poet and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882). From “The Complete Works.  1904. Vol. IX. Poems”

“Sursum Corda” by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Seek not the Spirit, if it hide,

Inexorable to thy zeal:

Baby, do not whine and chide;

Art thou not also real?

Why should'st thou stoop to poor excuse?

Turn on the Accuser roundly; say,

"Here am I, here will I remain

Forever to myself soothfast,

Go thou, sweet Heaven, or, at thy pleasure stay."—

Already Heaven with thee its lot has cast,

For it only can absolutely deal.

https://www.bartleby.com/370/30.html

I asked my friend Cathy Sedgwick in Australia if she had any idea who V M might be and she sent me the following information about two more poems with the same title published during the First World War in Australian newspapers.

Note from Cathy Sedgwick – another poem with that same title was publsihed in the Inglewood Advertiser (Vic.: 1914 - 1918) on Fri 7 Jan 1916,  Page 3:  "Sursum Corda" by F.E.H. 

And another of the same title was published in the “Clarence and Richmond Examiner” (Grafton, NSW : 1889 - 1915)  Sat 14 Sep 1907, Page 12:  "Sursum Corda" by Father Ryan previously published in the “Catholic Press”. . 

*Sursum Corda – Translation: “Lift up your hearts.” This is the opening phrase of a traditional Christian liturgy dating back to the 3rd century. It is normally used before celebrating the Eucharist during Communion or Mass.  There are quite a few poems with the same title, the most famous perhaps being by Ralph Waldo Emerson. 

Cathy Sedgwick does the most magnificent research and she has a website dedicated to the memory of the Australian men and women who served and died during the First World War and who are buried in cemeteries in the UK and Ireland.  You can find out more on her website 

https://ww1austburialsuk.weebly.com/?fbclid=IwAR3OMusr7lSdrjaIF5s2vCtaNi-EWvGSfXl3irpCiyZ376KMAFYB8_2L9R4

Cathy also has a Facebook Page – WW1 Australian War Graves UK and Ireland https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100031868962074

Reinhard Sorge (1892 – 1916) – German WW1 soldier poet

Reinhard Johannes Sorge was born on 29th January 1892 in Rixdorf, Neukölln, Berlin, Germany. His father was a salesman. After his father’s illness and death, Reinhard and his mother moved to Jena, where Reinhard was brought up in the home of a Lutheran Church Minister.

Reinhard wrote poetry from his youth, rebelling against his strict up-bringing, and he studied Nietzsche. This led him to become part of the German Expressionist movement. His first published poem was “The Youth” which was followed by a play entitled “The Beggar”. 

Reinhard was one of the first winners of the Kleist Prize, which was awarded annually from 1912 for German Literature in memory of Heinrich von Kleist the German poet, novelist and dramatist who died in 1911.

Reinhard married Susanne Handewerk and for their honeymoon they went on a cruise to Italy. Impressed with the piousness of the Italian Catholics, the couple converted to Catholicism on their return to Germany. 

Conscripted into the Imperial German Army in 1915, Reinhard was wounded during the Battle of the Somme on 20th July 1916 and died at a Field Dressing Station near Ablaincourt soon afterwards. He is buried in Vermandovillers German War Cemetery in France near the battlefield where he died. The poet Alfred Lichtenstein who was killed in 1914 is buried in that cemetery too. 

On leave in Berlin in 1915

Reinhard’s poetry collections were published after his death:

“Mutter der Himmel. Ein Sang in zwölf Gesängen” (1917);

“Gericht über Zarathustra. Vision” (1921);

“Preis der Unbefleckten. Sang über die Begegnung zu Lourde's” (1924);

“Nachgelassene Gedichte” (1925)

Tritt Herein (trans: Step Inside)

Tritt herein in unsre Kreise,

In den Nachtbann unseres Nichts,

Zeige Dich auf Engelweise,

Bräutigam des keuschen Lichts!

Daß wir Ehre Dir erzeigen,

Unser Sein in Dir erglüht,

Segne uns aus Deinem Schweigen,

Nimm uns Wille und Geblüt!

Posthumously published in “Nachgelassene Gedichte“ By Vier Quellen Verlag, Leipzig – 1925

Translation Step Inside

Step into our circles,

Into the night spell of our nothingness,

Show yourself in the guise of an angel,

Chaste bridegroom of the light!

So that we may honour you,

Our very being glows in you,

Bless us with your silence,

Take us passion and blood!

John Frederick Freeman (1880 – 1929) – British, critic, poet and writer

John Frederick Freeman was born on 29th January 1880 in Shoreditch, London, UK.  His parents were John Jacob Freeman and Catherine Esther, nee Botham.  John had three sisters – Emily born in 1874, Kate born in 1876, Florence born in 1878 and Beatrice, born in 1884.

In 1902, John married Gertrude Frances Farren. In 1911 he was working as an insurance clerk and the family lived in Penge. John and Gertrude had two daughters, Lucy and Catherine.   

During the First World War, John saw action on the Western Front, fighting at Messines and Passchendaele.

John was awarded the Hawthornden Prize in 1920 for “Poems new and old” (Selwyn &  Blount, London, 1920). He died in Anerley on 23rd September 1929.

John Frederick Freeman’s WW1 poetry collections were: 

“Presage of Victory and other poems of the time” Selwyn & Blount, London, 1916

“Stone trees and other poems” Selwyn & Blount, 1916

“Collected Poems” published in 1928 by Macmillan.

And his poems were published in 22 WW1 poetry anthologies.

“Last Hours” (which was set to music by poet, musician and composer Ivor Gurney - 1890 - 1937)

A gray day and quiet,

With slow clouds of gray,

And in dull air a cloud that falls, falls

All day.

The naked and stiff branches

Of oak, elm, thorn,

In the cold light are like men aged and

Forlorn.

Only a gray sky,

Grass, trees, grass again,

 And all the air a cloud that drips, drips,

 All day.

Lovely the lonely

Bare trees and green grass--

Lovelier now the last hours of slow winter

Slowly pass.

The Hawthornden Prize was set up in 1919 by Alice Warrender to be awarded to authors under the age of 41 for ‘imaginative literature’ – poetry or prose. 

Georges Audibert, Croix de Guerre (1885 – 1915) – French lawyer, writer and poet

While researching Marcel Audibert, a writer and friend of writer Paul Lintier*, to see

if he had written any poems, I discovered that Marcel's brother Georges was a poet

Georges Auguste Audibert was born in Lyon, France on 9th April 1885.  His parents were Adrien Audibert, a professor of law in the Faculty of Law, Paris, and his wife, Jeanne, nee Murier, daughter of French Senator Louis-Auguste Munier.

Like his father and elder brother, Marcel (who was also a writer), Georges studied law and became a lawyer, qualifying in 1912.  

Water distribution post, Artois, 1915

When war broke out, Georges became a Sergeant in the 246th French Infantry Regiment and fought in the Battles of the Marne, Crouy and Artois.  After thirteen months at war, Georges was killed during a scouting mission to reconoitre the enemy positions, for which he volunteered, at Souchez on 28th September 1915.  He was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Medaille Militaire.  As a writer and poet, Georges Audibert’s name is on the walls of the Partheon in Paris among the other French poets and writers who were killed in WW1.

Some of the poems written by Georges before the First World War were published under the title “Sous les Yeux de la Mort” in 1918 by Editions Georges Crès et Cie., Paris, with a promise that more of his poems were to be published, along with some of his letters. The collection was dedicated to Gabriel HAUVETTE (21 May 1887- 13 May 1910, aged 22 years).

His poem "Je voudrais que mon âme.... Poème de Georges Audibert" (1926) was set to music in 1926 by Jacques Brillouin :

“Vieilles et Vieux” a poem by Georges Audibert from  “Sous les Yeux de la Mort”

Vieilles et vieux, vous qui semblez vivre sans transes

Près du feu clair moins doux que vos yeux de velours,

Et qui laissez tomber vos bras frêles et lourds

Sur vos regrets et sur vos mortes espérances.

Vous tressaillez encore des anciennes souffrances.

Vous frissonnez encore des anciennes amours,

Et les sanglots et les baisers des anciens jours

Glissent dans le secret de vos longues navrances. 

Pourquoi, pourquoi toujours contempler le passé?

C’est pour s’être perdus dans un rève effacé,

Que vos regards troublés vont si loin, et s’effacent. 

Ah! pauvres vieux enfants deçus, passionnés

Et qui, jusqu’au profond de vos coeurs qui se glacent,

Respirez le parfum de vos bouquet fanés!

Translaton: “Elderly women and men” 

Elderly women and men, you who seem to live without exaltation

Sitting near the bright fire less sweet than your velvet eyes,

And who drop your frail and heavy arms

On your regrets and on your dead expectations.

Thoughts of old sufferings still make you jump.

You still shiver thinking about former loves,

And the sobs and the kisses of the old days

Slip into the secrets of your long heartbreaks.

Why, why are you always thinking about the past?

Is it so you can get lost in a faded dream,

That your troubled looks go so far away, then fade.

Ah! poor things - children still - disappointed, passionate

You who, to the depths of your frozen hearts,

Breathe in the scent of your faded bouquets!

The French Croix de Guerre  

The Croix de Guerre is a military decoration of France created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during the First World War, again in World War II, and in other conflicts; the croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures ("cross of war for external theatres of operations") was established in 1921. The Croix de Guerre was also bestowed on foreign military forces allied to France.

* http://fascinatingfactsofww1.blogspot.com/2023/01/paul-michel-lintier-1893-1916-french.html

Sources: Wikipedia and

http://medias.hachette-livre.fr/media/contenuNumerique/600/261121807.pdf

https://www.lieder.net/lieder/get_author_texts.html?AuthorId=28761