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For the Fallen

Reading time: 15 seconds

For a veteran Traditional A classic Gone too soon Plain English

Laurence Binyon · 1914

For the Fallen

Laurence Binyon · 1914

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old, Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.

Public domain in the UK and the US · serany.app

What Serany thinks about this poem

For a veteran Traditional A classic Gone too soon Plain English

Background

Binyon wrote it in September 1914, a few weeks into the war, sitting on the cliffs in north Cornwall. It was in The Times within the month, and it is read at every Remembrance service.

Meaning

The people who died stay as they were, young, while everyone left behind gets older. It promises that they will be remembered every morning and every evening, for good.

Who's it for

Anyone who served, and especially someone who died young in uniform. Right for a family who want the words everybody in the room will already know.

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Crossing the Bar

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Fear No More the Heat o' the Sun

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Fear no more the heat o' the sun, Nor the furious winter's rages:

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The Soldier

Rupert Brooke · 1915

If I should die, think only this of me: That there's some corner of a foreign field

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A best friend, especially one who died young. Right for a family who would rather the grief were said out loud than smoothed over.

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Epitaph on an Infant

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Little Boy Blue

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A small child, and a family who need the loss said simply rather than explained away. It is right where the toys are still in the house.

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The Soldier

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Warm Summer Sun

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Warm summer sun, shine friendly here; Warm western wind, blow kindly here;

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When I have fears that I may cease to be

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When I have fears that I may cease to be Before my pen has glean'd my teeming brain,

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The Life That I Have

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Not shown here, because the poem is still in copyright.

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About this poem

The Soldier

Rupert Brooke · 1915

If I should die, think only this of me: That there's some corner of a foreign field

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Who's it for

Someone who served, and especially anyone who died far from home. Right for a family who want something formal and proud.

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Read the poem

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