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The poet, the soldiers and a unique portrait of war for these times	The poet, the soldiers and a unique portrait of war for these times
2014-11-09 00:15:41 UTC	2015-04-11 04:40:38 UTC (5 months later)
One hundred years after “the war to end all wars”, young British soldiers are still coming home from battlefields, just as their fathers and grandfathers did. Last week, the union jack was lowered for the last time at Camp Bastion, a desert settlement the size of Reading that has been HQ of UK operations in Afghanistan since 2006. Of the many thousands of troops who passed through Camp Bastion, 453 would die in Afghanistan, with many more mutilated, injured and traumatised.	One hundred years after “the war to end all wars”, young British soldiers are still coming home from battlefields, just as their fathers and grandfathers did. Last week, the union jack was lowered for the last time at Camp Bastion, a desert settlement the size of Reading that has been HQ of UK operations in Afghanistan since 2006. Of the many thousands of troops who passed through Camp Bastion, 453 would die in Afghanistan, with many more mutilated, injured and traumatised.
On Sunday, Remembrance Day, veterans of Britain’s fourth Afghan war, a conflict that according to a BBC poll 68% of Britons consider to have been “not worthwhile”, will salute the flag, stiffen to attention at the sound of the Last Post and remember the dead.	On Sunday, Remembrance Day, veterans of Britain’s fourth Afghan war, a conflict that according to a BBC poll 68% of Britons consider to have been “not worthwhile”, will salute the flag, stiffen to attention at the sound of the Last Post and remember the dead.
Like the veterans of Ypres, the Somme and El Alamein, these soldiers will spend a lifetime answering questions about their service in this foreign field.	Like the veterans of Ypres, the Somme and El Alamein, these soldiers will spend a lifetime answering questions about their service in this foreign field.
What is it like to survive combat and return home ? What does it mean to put yourself in harm’s way serving Queen and country? Is fighting the Taliban different from fighting the Kaiser? What, ultimately, does it mean to be a soldier ?	What is it like to survive combat and return home ? What does it mean to put yourself in harm’s way serving Queen and country? Is fighting the Taliban different from fighting the Kaiser? What, ultimately, does it mean to be a soldier ?
These are among the issues that the former poet laureate, Andrew Motion, recently explored with some contemporary British soldiers serving with the 7th Armoured Brigade, the renowned military unit known as the Desert Rats. Having fought in Afghanistan, principally in Helmand province, as part of Operation Herrick 19, these soldiers have been coming home to their base in Germany throughout 2014, leaving the purple-brown landscape of Afghanistan for the green grass of Europe. Now they’re all back, and Motion has been turning their memories into free verse, “a kind of collaboration”, he says. (See below.)	These are among the issues that the former poet laureate, Andrew Motion, recently explored with some contemporary British soldiers serving with the 7th Armoured Brigade, the renowned military unit known as the Desert Rats. Having fought in Afghanistan, principally in Helmand province, as part of Operation Herrick 19, these soldiers have been coming home to their base in Germany throughout 2014, leaving the purple-brown landscape of Afghanistan for the green grass of Europe. Now they’re all back, and Motion has been turning their memories into free verse, “a kind of collaboration”, he says. (See below.)
Motion found an experience of ageless meaning. “Although I was only with them ~~with~~ ~~them~~ for a few days, it was extraordinarily intense and moving,” he told the Observer. “Partly because the guys themselves were so impressive. And partly because I could (figuratively speaking) hear my father moving about in the basement.”	Motion found an experience of ageless meaning. “Although I was only with them for a few days, it was extraordinarily intense and moving,” he told the Observer. “Partly because the guys themselves were so impressive. And partly because I could (figuratively speaking) hear my father moving about in the basement.”
Like many baby boomers, Motion, a youthful 61, lives in the shadow of the second world war, still coming to terms with the wartime career of his father, Richard, who landed at Gold Beach on D-Day as a 20-year-old tank commander with the Essex Yeomanry. The landing was traumatic, but Captain Motion survived to fight his way through France and Germany until, in the spring of 1945, he found himself outside the gates of Belsen , one of the first to witness the horrific aftermath of the Holocaust. Through the accident of that war, the Desert Rats’ base at Bad Fallingbostel is scarcely 5km from Belsen.	Like many baby boomers, Motion, a youthful 61, lives in the shadow of the second world war, still coming to terms with the wartime career of his father, Richard, who landed at Gold Beach on D-Day as a 20-year-old tank commander with the Essex Yeomanry. The landing was traumatic, but Captain Motion survived to fight his way through France and Germany until, in the spring of 1945, he found himself outside the gates of Belsen , one of the first to witness the horrific aftermath of the Holocaust. Through the accident of that war, the Desert Rats’ base at Bad Fallingbostel is scarcely 5km from Belsen.
Motion confesses he is obsessed by his father’s war. “All my early memories of him are in uniform,” he says. “I remember him talking about the smell of Belsen.” For the poet, Captain, later Colonel, Motion’s experience defined “what it meant to be a man/boy, and what it meant to be brave”. Now he has translated his visit to the base into a sequence of poems, called Coming Home.	Motion confesses he is obsessed by his father’s war. “All my early memories of him are in uniform,” he says. “I remember him talking about the smell of Belsen.” For the poet, Captain, later Colonel, Motion’s experience defined “what it meant to be a man/boy, and what it meant to be brave”. Now he has translated his visit to the base into a sequence of poems, called Coming Home.
The mission has also provided a rare insight into the cost of the military occupation of Afghanistan since 2001.	The mission has also provided a rare insight into the cost of the military occupation of Afghanistan since 2001.
The mood in Bad Fallingbostel, is, he reports, what you might expect. “They’re relieved to be safely back and bloody pleased to be alive. Every one of them knew someone who was killed or blown up by an IED [improvised explosive device]. Suicide bombers and IEDs were the biggest threats to their safety.”	The mood in Bad Fallingbostel, is, he reports, what you might expect. “They’re relieved to be safely back and bloody pleased to be alive. Every one of them knew someone who was killed or blown up by an IED [improvised explosive device]. Suicide bombers and IEDs were the biggest threats to their safety.”
For the returning troops, Motion says, “the worst memories were of seeing children suffer, and of other innocent locals who got in the way, and of course of seeing allied troops injured or killed”. In one poem he refers to “a shower of Afghan fingers”, a good example of something he says he found quite often among the troops – the instinct to make something horrible into a black joke. “You could find the same thing in Homer.”	For the returning troops, Motion says, “the worst memories were of seeing children suffer, and of other innocent locals who got in the way, and of course of seeing allied troops injured or killed”. In one poem he refers to “a shower of Afghan fingers”, a good example of something he says he found quite often among the troops – the instinct to make something horrible into a black joke. “You could find the same thing in Homer.”
Soldiering is timeless and Motion’s response treads across scarred ground: the futility of war; the majesty of the battlefield; the preciousness of everyday life; the relief of taking a swim after combat in temperatures of 95F in full body armour; the urge to bear witness; and the eternal solace of comradeship.	Soldiering is timeless and Motion’s response treads across scarred ground: the futility of war; the majesty of the battlefield; the preciousness of everyday life; the relief of taking a swim after combat in temperatures of 95F in full body armour; the urge to bear witness; and the eternal solace of comradeship.
Motion reports that he did not find, and did not expect to find, another Wilfred Owen. He comments that, in a lethal combat zone such as Helmand, “you find that stiff upper lip has stiffened a good deal. That’s as it should be. You don’t want a lot of mincing poets going over the top.”	Motion reports that he did not find, and did not expect to find, another Wilfred Owen. He comments that, in a lethal combat zone such as Helmand, “you find that stiff upper lip has stiffened a good deal. That’s as it should be. You don’t want a lot of mincing poets going over the top.”
In conversation with the Desert Rats, he says, he was conscious “of quite a lot of stuff going unsaid. They don’t really have the language to deal with the bad stuff. Who does? In between the lines, I detected a strong intimation of repressed sorrow.” The regimental padre, David Anderson, talks about “a bow wave of trauma”.	In conversation with the Desert Rats, he says, he was conscious “of quite a lot of stuff going unsaid. They don’t really have the language to deal with the bad stuff. Who does? In between the lines, I detected a strong intimation of repressed sorrow.” The regimental padre, David Anderson, talks about “a bow wave of trauma”.
At the same time, the men of 7th Armoured Brigade are fighters, proud of their regiment and its history. Motion again: “Monty [General Montgomery] himself wasn’t mentioned, but they were a band of brothers all right. When they reminisced about being in action, there was no doubt they were fighting first and foremost for one another.”	At the same time, the men of 7th Armoured Brigade are fighters, proud of their regiment and its history. Motion again: “Monty [General Montgomery] himself wasn’t mentioned, but they were a band of brothers all right. When they reminisced about being in action, there was no doubt they were fighting first and foremost for one another.”
The Desert Rats, he says, were “all pretty clear about the history of their presence in Helmand”. They knew that “the wheel has turned here many times before”. They were, however, “convinced they had done good work”. For the British contingent, the retreat to base camp at Bad Fallingbostel was “not a defeat”. There was also, he says, “a widespread view that we were better at it [occupying Afghanistan] than the Russians”.	The Desert Rats, he says, were “all pretty clear about the history of their presence in Helmand”. They knew that “the wheel has turned here many times before”. They were, however, “convinced they had done good work”. For the British contingent, the retreat to base camp at Bad Fallingbostel was “not a defeat”. There was also, he says, “a widespread view that we were better at it [occupying Afghanistan] than the Russians”.
Motion’s inner dialogue with his father’s memory coloured his own mission to Germany, but he was conscious of the incongruity of his presence among the Desert Rats. “I was so much a child of my time that, when I was growing up, all I wanted to do was grow my hair, smoke weed, look like a girl, and be as unmilitary as possible.”	Motion’s inner dialogue with his father’s memory coloured his own mission to Germany, but he was conscious of the incongruity of his presence among the Desert Rats. “I was so much a child of my time that, when I was growing up, all I wanted to do was grow my hair, smoke weed, look like a girl, and be as unmilitary as possible.”
He admits that his views have changed with age. “All my interest in and respect for the army, which is now very great, started to appear when I was in my 40s, something to do with my changing feelings for my father, I suppose, thanks to a greater understanding of how the army had shaped him.”	He admits that his views have changed with age. “All my interest in and respect for the army, which is now very great, started to appear when I was in my 40s, something to do with my changing feelings for my father, I suppose, thanks to a greater understanding of how the army had shaped him.”
Going to Bad Fallingbostel, he was pleased to find that in all his encounters “regardless of age and background, everyone knew about Sassoon and Wilfred Owen and had great admiration for them, because they felt spoken-for by their poems.”	Going to Bad Fallingbostel, he was pleased to find that in all his encounters “regardless of age and background, everyone knew about Sassoon and Wilfred Owen and had great admiration for them, because they felt spoken-for by their poems.”
Motion defined his own role, among the Desert Rats, as unegotistical. Privately, he wrestled with worries about “combat-voyeurism”, and decided he would listen to their witness and eliminate himself from the lines as much as possible, “concentrating on the soldiers themselves, and what they’d seen and felt and said. I wanted to write poetry in which my own ego hardly featured.”	Motion defined his own role, among the Desert Rats, as unegotistical. Privately, he wrestled with worries about “combat-voyeurism”, and decided he would listen to their witness and eliminate himself from the lines as much as possible, “concentrating on the soldiers themselves, and what they’d seen and felt and said. I wanted to write poetry in which my own ego hardly featured.”
Possibly the most moving poem in “Coming Home” is The Gardener, Motion’s rendering of a mother’s grief. Margaret Ivison lost her son Lieutenant Mark Ivison to a sniper in 2003. [see poem: The Gardener]. “In my imagination he is never dead”, says his mother, a line echoed in the poem. “I don’t want to die,” said her son, as he waited for the medevac helicopter.	Possibly the most moving poem in “Coming Home” is The Gardener, Motion’s rendering of a mother’s grief. Margaret Ivison lost her son Lieutenant Mark Ivison to a sniper in 2003. [see poem: The Gardener]. “In my imagination he is never dead”, says his mother, a line echoed in the poem. “I don’t want to die,” said her son, as he waited for the medevac helicopter.
Motion has written about war before. His last collection, The Customs House, contains a sequence of poems called Laurels and Donkeys, which are about 20th-century western wars, from the first world war to Iraq and Afghanistan, a body of work that will be recognised when he is awarded the 2014 Wilfred Owen prize on 12 November. “I’m pleased about this,” he says, “because my admiration for Owen amounts almost to reverence.”	Motion has written about war before. His last collection, The Customs House, contains a sequence of poems called Laurels and Donkeys, which are about 20th-century western wars, from the first world war to Iraq and Afghanistan, a body of work that will be recognised when he is awarded the 2014 Wilfred Owen prize on 12 November. “I’m pleased about this,” he says, “because my admiration for Owen amounts almost to reverence.”
What, finally, does he take away from his brush with life on the front line? “As a poet,” he reports, “it made me feel an unusual degree of responsibility to my subject – the pity of war, as Owen has it. As a Brit, it left me still wondering about the rights and wrongs of being there in the first place, but absolutely convinced that the soldiers themselves had done an amazingly good job in extremely difficult circumstances.	What, finally, does he take away from his brush with life on the front line? “As a poet,” he reports, “it made me feel an unusual degree of responsibility to my subject – the pity of war, as Owen has it. As a Brit, it left me still wondering about the rights and wrongs of being there in the first place, but absolutely convinced that the soldiers themselves had done an amazingly good job in extremely difficult circumstances.
“And finally, as a man, it made me ask the questions I’ve felt as a shaping force all my life: questions about bravery, about selflessness, about capability, about the life of action as opposed to the life of thought. In the process, I think it brought to a kind of crisis in me lots of feelings I’ve always had about being the son of a soldier, but one who’s had the great good fortune to live in peace.”	“And finally, as a man, it made me ask the questions I’ve felt as a shaping force all my life: questions about bravery, about selflessness, about capability, about the life of action as opposed to the life of thought. In the process, I think it brought to a kind of crisis in me lots of feelings I’ve always had about being the son of a soldier, but one who’s had the great good fortune to live in peace.”
Coming Home, by Andrew Motion, will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 4.30pm on Remembrance Sunday.	Coming Home, by Andrew Motion, will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 4.30pm on Remembrance Sunday.
War Debts (extracts)by Lance Bombardier Stephen North	War Debts (extracts)by Lance Bombardier Stephen North
You wonder how they miss you to be honest, throwing stuff over the walls. But they do miss you most of the time. One of my mates, he got hit, though, I say hit, by a shower of Afghan fingers. Suicide bomber, in the road outside. Normally the alarm gets you first but even then you’ll be wow, wow, something is real…	You wonder how they miss you to be honest, throwing stuff over the walls. But they do miss you most of the time. One of my mates, he got hit, though, I say hit, by a shower of Afghan fingers. Suicide bomber, in the road outside. Normally the alarm gets you first but even then you’ll be wow, wow, something is real…
Surreal if I’m honest with you. Surreal when I’m back at home.	Surreal if I’m honest with you. Surreal when I’m back at home.
The ease. The slow pace.	The ease. The slow pace.
In subway, for instance. Cucumbers. Tomatoes. You think: Get it done, so everyone can go! Just come on!	In subway, for instance. Cucumbers. Tomatoes. You think: Get it done, so everyone can go! Just come on!
Then you leave and the road works are everywhere with nothing moving. And rain pattering down and clouds covering the stars.	Then you leave and the road works are everywhere with nothing moving. And rain pattering down and clouds covering the stars.
The war debts will come out then. You think: My weapon. Where is my weapon? And you look for it. You did everything with your weapon and urgh. You miss it. Nobody understands. You miss it. You went to the toilet with it. And the shower with it. You went running with it. You did everything with it. If you had a doss bag, you kept it close as you could, or in your doss bag sort of.	The war debts will come out then. You think: My weapon. Where is my weapon? And you look for it. You did everything with your weapon and urgh. You miss it. Nobody understands. You miss it. You went to the toilet with it. And the shower with it. You went running with it. You did everything with it. If you had a doss bag, you kept it close as you could, or in your doss bag sort of.
It’s trust, you see, you have to trust your weapon. It’s individual.	It’s trust, you see, you have to trust your weapon. It’s individual.
I’m Stephen North. Lance Bombardier Stephen North.	I’m Stephen North. Lance Bombardier Stephen North.
Lance Bombardier North served in Afghanistan from September 2013 to March 2014.	Lance Bombardier North served in Afghanistan from September 2013 to March 2014.
The Programme by Lance Corporal Ben Johnson	The Programme by Lance Corporal Ben Johnson
I’m an army brat. I was brought up to love the army. Basically I now do army intelligence work. I’m only 20.	I’m an army brat. I was brought up to love the army. Basically I now do army intelligence work. I’m only 20.
It was difficult for mum to start with. Take good care of yourself she said; keep your head down; be a grey man.	It was difficult for mum to start with. Take good care of yourself she said; keep your head down; be a grey man.