The German Sergeant bled for his Vaterland
In the same year the King's Guard was born;
Unaware he'd bleed again for a maniac's plan,
Or of the son and two brothers he'd mourn.
The King's Guard - a strapping Bristol lad
Grew six feet two and weighed fifteen stone.
He would serve as HIS father before him had -
A Royal Guard for His Majesty's Throne.
The German Sergeant's family fought poverty
Under Versailles vengeful provisions.
And from those ashes of hatred and anarchy,
A MONSTER rose to fulfill his mad visions.
The King's Guard loved his royal regiment,
Steeped in centuries of glory and power;
With daily pomp and splendor, he was content,
To guard the Palace and the Old Black Tower.
The German Sergeant feared Adolph from the start,
Despite his Vaterland's dramatic revival -
His Jewish Commander and family had to depart,
(His Iron Cross couldn't buy their survival.)
The King's Guard cared nothing for politics;
He would fight where his sovereign desired.
When war was declared after Hitler's antics,
He simply shouldered his Enfield and fired.
The German Sergeant was a civilian in '39;
Too old for the blitzkrieg war.
But he cheered France's fall with joy and wine!
It's Over! Addie's evened the score!!
The King's Guard, at Dunkirk, fought in shame -
His regiment surrounded and close to defeat.
But it held its beaches and preserved its fame.
The last to leave with the Motor Boat fleet.
The German Sergeant heard Hitler's boasts repeated,
His Thousand Year Reich and his racist tirades.
When called to fight Russia, he sobbed - defeated.
Addie's MAD! Once again we're betrayed!
The King's Guards were hastily sent to Greece
To rout Mussolini's conquest disgrace.
But Hitler's troops, too, flew in for relief
To oust the Allies - and saved Duce's face.
The German Sergeant, in Russia, was informed
Of his son's death in his U-boat at sea.
Far from his wife and daughters, he mourned,
He was too young! It SHOULD have been me!
The King's Guard trudged to Egypt from Palestine -
To face Rommel's Desert Fox Afrika Corps.
After YEARS of retreat, they won at El Alemein!
And sailed in triumph to his Majesty's shore.
The German Sergeant, twice wounded by partisans.
Had one brother captured - another one slain.
TWO years of withdrawals and heroic stands . . .
For a Tyrant's madness - even HATE and DISDAIN!
The King's Guard found a bride in Yorkshire's glens,
Then joined the battle for Jerry's last hour.
He fought through France! Belgium! The Netherlands!
And lost his leg on The Bridge Too Far. . .
The German Sergeant came home in disbelief
To a nation of widows - and complete devastation.
'And again starved in rubble and grime and grief -
The price of aggression and world condemnation.
The King's Guard, in Yorkshire with his family,
Saw his King die - his Empire decline.
We met on a Yank Army post - Ray and me.
Old friends . . . parted since '59.
The German Sergeant's one brother left after WW1;
He was my 'civilian' boss back in Buffalo.
We met - and I was the 'Sergeant's' surrogate son . .
. Till he joined his true son thirty years ago.
The King's Guard still hates EVERY German;
'Wouldn't come there on my post-Vietnam tour.
He swore he'd run down all 'Jerrys' like vermin!
And his love for Royalty is still fiercely pure!
The German Sergeant didn't hate - he loved Germany,
As the King's Guard loved his King to the end.
They were Fate's gift to me for loving MY country!
The Proud Warriors! The Bitter Enemies! - MY FRIENDS!
Earl Shollenberger