Nurse’s new poem honours bravery of Somme soldiers

Cardiac nurse and spoken word artist Molly Case has penned a poem marking the centenary of the Battle of the Somme.

Ms Case’s poem Nursing the Nation was a highlight of RCN congress 2013, and was watched more than 200,000 times online.

She has now teamed up with the Royal British Legion to release a new poem commemorating the 100th anniversary of the start of the Battle of the Somme.

Watch Molly Case recite her poem

Optimism and bravery

More than 1 million men were killed in the first world war battle, which lasted from July to November 1916, with more than 55,000 British casualties on the first day alone.

Ms Case’s poem the Somme is about the optimism and bravery of a group of four friends who join a ‘pals battalion’, in which volunteers enlisted with friends, neighbours and colleagues.

Many pals battalions suffered heavy losses at the Somme, which severely affected the communities they left behind.

‘Contemporary twist’

A video of Ms Case reciting her poem is set inside a modern-day bar, to show the impact these losses had on communities.

The poem reads: ‘The hole they left spread like an ink stain, letters that never came home, fading picture frames, no more footie games on the Green.’

Ms Case said: ‘I knew about the Battle of the Somme before I began the project, but during the process I learned a lot more about the sacrifice of the pals and the losses their communities suffered.

‘I hope that the retelling of this story with a contemporary twist will encourage younger generations in particular to give thought to those who fought, and similarly reflect on the tragic futility of war.’

The Royal British Legion hopes that schools and other groups will use the poem at commemorative events.