‘Mametz Wood’ was inspired by the Battle of Mametz Wood in 1916.
Sheers tells the story of the discovery of the bodies of 20 young men, all of whom were slaughtered in battle.
Some people attribute the 4000 deaths in the battle to poor tactical decisions made by commanders.
The poem conveys how devastating, destructive and futile war is.
The poet illustrates that war affects not only people, but nature too, as the land has been scarred by violence.

Keywords

Futile - pointless
Relic - an object (usually of historical interest) which has survived an earlier time
Inexperienced - having little knowledge or experience in something
Fortified - made strong or secure
Slaughter - the killing of many people or animals unjustly, or in a particularly cruel manner

Common misconception

Students often make the mistake of thinking that, like many of the other war poems, this poem was written by a soldier at the time of the war.

This poem is not a personal account; Sheers wrote this poem in 2005. He wanted to raise awareness about the loss of Welsh lives in Mametz Wood and illustrate how destructive war is.

There are some insightful photographs of the damage that the battle has done to the land, as well as some very useful photographs of some of the remnants of dug-up graves that students might find interesting and useful to see when reading this poem.

Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need access to a copy of the Eduqas poetry anthology for this lesson.

Content guidance

Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Worksheet

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.

If something is futile it means that it is...

difficult

Correct answer: pointless

frightening

Q2.

What is propaganda?

Correct answer: information, often biased or misleading in nature, used to promote a cause

information, often unbiased and honest in nature, used to promote a cause

information, often unbiased and misleading in nature, used to promote an event

Q3.

When was World War 1?

1899–1902

Correct answer: 1914-1918

1939-1945

Q4.

What is a relic?

a common weapon used in WW1

Correct answer: an object (usually of historical interest)

a defence tactic used in combat

Q5.

Which word means to 'make strong or secure'?

Correct answer: fortify

mimic

plough

Q6.

A is a direct comparison between two things.

Correct Answer: metaphor

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.

'Mametz Wood' was written in 2005 but based on events which occurred in 1916. Which war does this relate to?

Correct answer: WW1

WW2

The Boer War

Q2.

What is true of the solders who were place in the 38th Division in WW1?

they were selected for their previous battle experience

Correct answer: they were young men who had been motivated to enlist by propaganda

Correct answer: they were poorly trained and ill-equipped

they were fire-arms trained

Q3.

Match the key vocabulary to its definition.

Correct Answer:futile,pointless

pointless

Correct Answer:inexperienced,having little knowledge in something

having little knowledge in something

Correct Answer:fortified, made strong or secure

made strong or secure

Correct Answer:slaughter,the killing of many people or animals unjustly

the killing of many people or animals unjustly

Q4.

Starting with the first, order the events of 'Mametz Wood' as we read them in the poem.

1 - Years after the Battle of Mametz Wood, local farmers are still finding remains.

2 - The men’s bodies have been found in bits.

3 - The men were told to walk towards the “nesting” machine guns.

4 - Even years later, the earth still bears the scars of that fateful battle.

5 - Earlier that morning, twenty young men had been dug up.

6 - Their heads are tilted back, and they are still wearing their boots.

7 - The poet imagines the men singing when alive.

Q5.

In 'Mametz Wood', Sheers illustrates that war affects not only people, but too, as the land has been scarred by violence.

Correct Answer: nature

Q6.

What do some people attribute the death of the soldiers who fought The Battle of Mametz Wood to?

Correct answer: poor tactical decisions made by commanders

poor weather conditions

poor conditions in the woods made it hard to fight