| READER: 1 |
'When you go home
Tell them of us and say
For your tomorrow
We gave our today.'
Today we remember all those who lost their lives and were injured in war. In particular we remember those who died in the First World War that started in 1914 and finished in 1918, and the Second World War that started in 1939 and finished in 1945. But we also remember those who have died in other wars that have taken place since - and are still taking place. Someone counted up all the wars that had taken place since 1945 and it came to nearly 200. We in Britain remember the wars our soldiers have been involved with - in Africa and the Middle East, in the Falklands and the Gulf - and this year we remember those who have died, and continue to die, a long way from those they love and who love them, in the Iraq War.
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| READER 2: |
The men who fought in the First World War will now be very, very old; only a few of them still survive and they will be well into their nineties. We must go on remembering them. Millions of people died, many in the mud and the trenches of France and Belgium. Those who fought in the trenches did not expect to live long - perhaps 5-6 weeks. Some of our grandparents and great-grandparents may remember stories told to them about the War and have their own memories of the Second World War.
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| READER 3: |
Listen to the beat of the metronome. Each beat represents one million people who died during World War One.
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Set the metronome to beat for 15 seconds (this timing is not strictly accurate but 15 seconds does seem long enough to make the point).
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At home in England, some people tried to glorify war in order to make men join the armed forces, especially during the First World War. Listen to this poem. It makes joining up and fighting seem like a game:
'Who's For the Game?'
by Jessie Pope
Who's for the game, the biggest that's played,
The red crashing game of a fight?
Who'll grip and tackle the job unafraid?
And who thinks he'd rather sit tight?
Who'll toe the line for the signal to 'Go!'?
Who'll give his country a hand?
Who would much rather come back with a crutch
Than lie low and be out of the fun?
Come along lads - but you'll come on alright -
For there's only one course to pursue,
Your country is up to her neck in a fight,
And she's looking and calling for you.
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| READER 2: |
But this poem is so different. It captures the horror of war and tells us why we use poppies to remember the war dead:
In Flanders Fields
by John Macrae
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row.
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
in Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
in Flanders fields.
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| READER 3: |
These poems show firstly how young men were encouraged to join up. If they didn't, they were taunted with jeers that girls wouldn't want them and their children would despise them.
But then the soldier in the second poem talks about the memories we need to keep and our responsibilities to those brave men who knew they were going to die. One poet wrote from the safety of England and tried to shame men into joining up; the other wrote from the reality of the battlefield.
Listen to the music for a moment and watch the candle flame (light the candle) as we think about those men and women who gave their lives in all the Wars of the last century, including those that are still taking place.
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Play the 'stirring' music for a few minutes.
| READER 1: |
When we watch the Remembrance Day service, we don't just remember those who have died; we remember the survivors, the injured and the courage of those who fought for their country. In the Remembrance Day parades, most of those we see are from the Second World War (and they are getting older too) and more recent wars. In the Second World War, more civilians were killed than soldiers, but not as many soldiers as in the First World War.
Listen again to the metronome and reflect with each beat on the millions killed in the Second World War.
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Set the metronome to beat for 15 seconds. Afterwards, READER 1 continues:
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Bishop Maurice Wood was a young Chaplain in the Army when the Normandy invasions took place. He tells of running up the beach under fire. When remembering that time he says his deep faith in Jesus Christ left him with no fear of death but he was terrified of being badly wounded for he would carry the wounds for the rest of his life.
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| READER 2: |
'Does it Matter?'
by Siegfried Sassoon
Does it matter? - losing your legs?...
For people will always be kind,
And you need not show that you mind
When others come in after hunting
To gobble their muffins and eggs.
Does it matter? - losing your sight?
There's such splendid work for the blind
And people will always be kind,
As you sit on the terrace remembering
And turning your face to the light.
Do they matter? - those dreams from the pit?...
You can drink and forget and be glad,
And people won't say that you're mad;
For they'll know you've fought for your country
And no one will worry a bit?
What attitudes and ideas do you think Sassoon is attacking in this poem?
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| READER 3: |
It can be difficult for us at our age to appreciate how important Remembrance Day is. If we watch the service, the men and women marching seem old and the wars lie far in the past. But in most of our family histories there will be relatives who have died in the wars of the last century and in those 200 wars in the world since the Second World War.
We have learned (we hope) not to get involved in such large-scale wars again. It is painful for the families of all those killed. Today we remember those who have died, all of them - friend and foe alike - as we look for a better world and are reconciled to our former enemies:
'Reconciliation'
by Siegfried Sassoon
When you are standing at your hero's grave,
Or near some homeless village where he died,
Remember, through your heart's rekindling pride,
The German soldiers who were loyal and brave.
Men fought like brutes; and hideous things were done;
And you have nourished hatred, harsh and blind.
But in that Golgotha perhaps you'll find
The mothers of the men who killed your son.
During this weekend, take some time to think about the men and women who died and were injured believing they were giving us a better life, giving their lives for others:
'When you go home
Tell them of us and say
For your tomorrow
We gave our today.'
We will close with some music (either the National Anthem - with the pupils standing - or Elgar again) and think about those who have been prepared to give up their lives so that we can have a better, freer, future.
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