War poetry is often hard to read because of the waste and the tragedy. This poem by Scottish poet Ewart Alan Mackintosh is almost unbearably moving, but so simply and beautifully written.
In Memoriam by Ewart Alan Mackintosh
So you were David’s father,
And he was your only son,
And the new-cut peats are rotting
And the work is left undone,
Because of an old man weeping,
Just an old man in pain,
For David, his son David,
That will not come again.
Oh, the letters he wrote you,
And I can see them still,
Not a word of the fighting,
But just the sheep on the hill
And how you should get the crops in
Ere the year get stormier,
And the Bosches have got his body,
And I was his officer.
You were only David’s father,
But I had fifty sons
When we went up in the evening
Under the arch of the guns,
And we came back at twilight –
O God! I heard them call
To me for help and pity
That could not help at all.
Oh, never will I forget you,
My men that trusted me,
More my sons than your fathers’,
For they could only see
The little helpless babies
And the young men in their pride.
They could not see you dying,
And hold you while you died.
Happy and young and gallant,
They saw their first-born go,
But not the strong limbs broken
And the beautiful men brought low,
The piteous writhing bodies,
They screamed “Don’t leave me, sir”,
For they were only your fathers
But I was your officer.
On 16th May 1916 Lieutenant Mackintosh and a battalion of Seaforth Highlanders led a raid on German trenches near Arras. Fourteen British soldiers were wounded, and two were killed – one of those was Private David Sutherland. He has no known grave although his name is on the monument at the Arras Cemetery, shown above. The line “the Bosches have got his body” is one of the most heartfelt of the poem.
Mackintosh, as officer in charge of David Sutherland, would have had the duty of reading and censoring the young man’s letters home. Because of that, he’d have been aware of David asking his parents about the crops and “the sheep on the hill”. David came from Achreamie in Caithness, a rural area in the north of Scotland. He was just only nineteen when he died. Mackintosh got one detail wrong – David had a brother so was not an “only son”.
Ewart Alan Mackintosh was awarded the Military Cross for Gallantry. He was a popular officer and his men affectionately called him ‘Tosh’. He was killed in action on 21 November 1917. He was an “only son”.
You can listen to Ralph Fiennes read this superb poem here:
Or better still, hear it with a gorgeous Scottish accent here:
Were you moved by this poem like I was? Let me know by leaving a comment.
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Joan Cashion
Thank you Suzanne
It is a beautiful and greatly moving poem enhanced by the photographs and information about the poet.
Susannah Fullerton
I am glad the extra information added to your experience of the poem.
Barbara McKay
Thank you Susannah. Why is it that WW1 affects us so after all it was such a long time ago. Very beautiful words dripping with tears.
Helen Wood
They could not see you dying
And hold you while you died
How much pain could an officer endure? Then the fathers and mothers who would never see their sons again.
Will we never learn?
Susannah Fullerton
Yes, the whole ghastly situation is being replicated in Gaza right now. Human beings don’t seem to learn. But it is a beautifully moving poem, isn’t it.
Brian Doyle
And as we look out on today’s world have we learnt anything about the tragedy of futile wars
Sadly no
Barbara Wright
Susannah, Thank you for the beautiful moving poem. So much pain expressed in the verses.
This took me back to the first time I attended your lectures. It was about the World War 1 poets. I still have your notes which encourage me to look into poets of the period.
Lorna Nawran
Brilliant. Extremely sad. Thought provoking. So many sad parents.