G. A. Studdert Kennedy (1883–1929)

Studdert-Kennedy, an Anglican vicar, began by supporting the First World War, as did so many others. But after volunteering as a war chaplain and experiencing the unimaginable horror of the trenches, he became a passionate opponent of war. He is known affectionately as "Woodbine Willie" from his custom of giving out cigarettes (Wills' Woodbines, a popular smoke of the day) to the soldiers. The poems are simply written, often in Cockney slang, but they can still move you to tears:

"Waste of muscle, waste of Brain,
Waste of Patience, waste of Pain,
Waste of Manhood, waste of Health,
Waste of Beauty, waste of Wealth,
Waste of Blood, and waste of Tears,
Waste of Youth's most precious years,
Waste of ways the Saints have trod,
Waste of Glory, waste of God, ---
War!"… (mehr)