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
The French Revolution ( 1789 ) precipitated the events that led to the abolition of the slavery. In 1793, a proclamation granted slaves freedom in France. In 1803 Haiti gained its independence from France and ended slavery. The Haitian Revolution gained its inspiration from the French Revolution.
Answer:
A. Both ended slavery in their territories.
Egyptians built pyramids while Chinese did not and bury the dead in earth.
Explanation:
Egyptians believed in building pyramids as burial sites so as to allow the person dead to be able to go to heaven through the raised platform calling for gods while the Chinese believed in burying the dead under the earth in monuments as they became.
The Chinese monuments include terracotta sculptures that are underground in the tomb complexes beneath the earth while the Egyptian pyramids went as high as it was possible to make them like the Great pyramid of Giza.
Answer:
The American colonists owed their military successes to the tactics of revolutionary war they used - tactics whose elements were borrowed from the Indians and from the inhabitants of the forefront of the settlements and the border. This tactic is a tactics of loose battle, tactics of the struggle of the armed people - was widely used in the American War of Independence.
On April 9, 1775, not far from Boston, Concord and Lexington experienced the first skirmishes, and the British suffered heavy losses during the fighting. At first, the advantages were on the side of the British, but the rebels soon switched to guerrilla warfare tactics, setting up ambushes and attacks. Near Boston, a “freedom camp” was formed, where armed volunteers flocked.
Explanation:
