Songs about the Long March by Lesley Loughlin

​The Long March to Freedom: A song by Lesley Loughlin

(from the account of Bernard Loughlin my father-in-law written for my husband Hugh with love)

It is my privilege and it is my pain to share this story here today
It started not so long ago, in a land not far away
The country’s now called Poland, ‘twas in nineteen forty-five
When my father joined the Long, cold March to Freedom.

There were thousands of those prisoners a product of the war
Confined within the stalags, working on farms were thousands more
Away from friends and family, who little knew if they’d lived or died
Till they began their Long, cold March to Freedom.

The Russians were advancing, they could set the prisoners free
So to keep his hold upon his foe, Hitler made this cruel decree
That all the POWs. who were held on Prussian lands
Should be rounded up to start a Long, cold March for Freedom.

It was January of forty-five that Hitler’s orders came
For weeks on end they trudged their way over European plain
No special clothes, no rations, half conscious and half starved
They shivered their way as they made their bid for freedom.

The winter months of forty-five, so all the records show
Brought bitter winds to freeze the bones, minus 40c or so,
They plodded some seven hundred miles, at barely eight a day
A torturous ordeal was that Long, cold March to Freedom.

And one by one, by night and day, their numbers did decrease,
As life itself had lost its charm, death would be welcome release
But for the few who made it back, no cheers of welcome came
For no-one seemed to know about this March to Freedom.

Though thousands had set out upon, that long, cold road through hell
Only twelve of father’s group remained their story for to tell
Of how they’d trudged through blinding snow with frostbite on their feet
And with courage stepped that harsh, Long March to Freedom.

Hear the song performed by Greensand Ridge:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voiVD33rqLI

The Long March of 1945: A song by Lesley Loughlin

(inspired by the DVD the Long March to Freedom)

Our guards called it marching and driven we’d go,
But we called it trudging through blizzarding snow;
The stalags a challenge to keep our heads high,
The exodus death march our task not to die.
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

Many friends fallen, escape from frost-bite
Some carried another brother-trudger all night.
It’s hard for the young’uns, it’s worse for the old;
You try a-trudging with feet raw and cold.
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

No boots to speak of, no great coats nor gloves,
Like worn rags on stick men, they’d laugh our dear loves
At home girls are waiting, and mothers with babes
The home fires are burning, from Hitler to save
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

One faded photo, one faded smile,
We ditched other baggage after many a long mile
Hog’s food was a banquet, pig’s heat kept us live,
A shrunken potato divided by five.
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

Night’s cold will freeze you, we sleep in our clothes,
We huddle together like penguins in rows,
When morning light dawns, we awaken in hell,
Some others in heaven, we bid them farewell
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

Some small acts of kindness from farmer or friend
But skeleton scarecrows return in the end
They don’t know our story, starved, frozen and driven
They feed us with donuts, the first food we’re given.
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

The swastika’s fallen, his madness is done
We say we are lucky our trudging has won,
Our land’s worth the fighting, a land for the free
Sometimes in the night though, a trudging I’ll be.
It’s rifle-butt driven, but Nazies or no,
We’re all there a-trudging thru’ feckering snow.

Hear the song performed by Greensand Ridge:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpzaT7aWJVY