Ella Osborn’s 1918 diary provides insight into the experiences of an American nurse serving in
France at the end of World War I. In addition to her notes about the men under her care and
events in France, Osborn jotted down two popular World War I poems, “In Flanders Fields,” by
Canadian surgeon Lt. Col. John D. McCrae, and “The Answer,” by Lt. J. A. Armstrong of
Wisconsin.
McCrae composed “In Flanders Fields” on May 3, 1915, during the Second Battle of Ypres,
Belgium. It was published in Punch magazine on December 8, 1915, and became one of the most
popular and frequently quoted poems about the war. It was used for recruitment, in propaganda
efforts, and to sell war bonds. Today the red poppy of McCrae’s poem has become a symbol for
soldiers who have died in combat.
In Flanders Fields the poppies grow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place.
“The Answer” is one of many poems written in response to “In Flanders Fields”:
Sleep peacefully, for all is well.
Your flaming torch aloft we bear,
With burning heart an oath we swear
To keep the faith to fight it through
To crush the foe, or sleep with you
In Flanders Field
Osborn’s transcripts of the poems contain some textual differences from the published versions.
Based on the ink used in the diary entries and the ink used in the verses, it appears she went back
in her diary to find empty pages to include the poems.
Transcripts
[The poems as transcribed in Osborn’s diary contain some textual differences from the published versions.]
In Flanders Fields
In Flanders Fields the poppies grow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place. While in the Sky
The larks still bravely singing, fly
2
World War I poems: “In Flanders Fields” & “The Answer,” 1918
© 2014 The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
www.gilderlehrman.org
Unheard, amid the guns below.
We are the dead, Short days ago
We lived, felt dawns, saw sunsets glow;
Loved and were loved – but now we lie
In Flanders Field
Take up our quarrel with the foe!
To you from falling hands we throw
The torch, Be yours to bear it high!
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep tho’ poppies blow
In Flanders Field.
The Answer –
In Flanders Field the cannon boom
And fitful flashes light the gloom;
While up above, like Eagles, fly
The fierce destroyers of the sky;
With stains the earth wherein you lie
Is redder than the poppy bloom
In Flanders Field.
Sleep on ye brave! The shrieking shell,
The quaking trench, the startling yell,
The fury of the battle hell
Shall wake you not; for all is well.
Sleep peacefully, for all is well.
Your flaming torch aloft we bear,
With burning heart an oath we swear
To keep the faith to fight it through
To crush the foe, or sleep with
Answer: After revolution the free black population "OFTEN ENJOYS THE RIGHT TO VOTE IF ITS MALE MEMBER MET TAXPAYING OR PROPERTY QUALIFICATION.
Explanation: After the revolution in America, which was gotten by the abolinionist antislavery movement, that lead to civil war between the northern and southern America. The black slaves began to enjoy freedom in the America. Many blacks stayed back after being free, because the rights of the Americans to vote and to be voted for was given to them. So they can vote against any government that will want to take them back to bondage. This made them automatically becomes citizen of America, but he can only be a citizen each family can only vote if it's male members own a property or any tax paying means.
The Truman Doctrine was an American foreign policy to stop Soviet imperialism during the Cold War. It was announced to Congress by President Harry S. Truman on March 12, 1947 when he pledged to contain Soviet threats to Greece and Turkey.
The Pentagon Papers "revealed that government officials had misled Congress and the American people about the war," since it was argued that President Johnson knew far more about the detailed horrors and failed strategies of the war than he let on.
