War - Ww1 - The Bantam Battalions Poem by Paul Warren

The measure of a men in the Great War
Was volunteering for the Army knowing the score
And to take the King's shilling was seen
By the British to be to be patriotic so very keen

But you had to be 5'3' in your full height
And some weren't accepted after trying as they might
Some of these men were strong coal miner types
Who spent their lives underground as their strength might

The member for Birkenhead Mr Alfred Bigland saw them
And knew that they could be used although short stature men
So he persuaded Lord Kitchener to give them a go
And the Birkenhead Bantam Battalions were created for the war show

These men flocked to the recruiters and the Battalions grew
And they trained and went to the Western Front battles too
Alfred Bigland had to sell them to the government as well
When in France they showed that they could match others in that hell

Canadians and Scots were recruited to these battalions
The Scotsknown as the 'Devil Dwarfs'in their legions
They included Arthur Askey and Billy Butlin as entertainers in their game
And these brave men have passed into the last 100 year history's fame

© Paul Warren Poetry