I wore the Queen’s Uniform for 24 months
And not a single day more
As that was all that was required of me
To follow other conscripts before
I was not a Military man by choice
But the Law of the Land decreed
That each and every fit young man
Would fill Great Britain’s need
For the maintenance of a Military Might
On Land and Sea and in the Air
To counter any threat of War or oppression
That might have been lurking here and there
Across the European Continent
And varied parts of Asia too
Where the services of the British Military Man
Was proven through and through
I never knew the smell of cordite
Or heard the scream of an enemy shell
But the lads in Korea, and Borneo and Malaya
They all knew these dangers so well
Where they fought on the hills of Korea
Against an enemy they were outnumbered
But in the swamps of Malaya as they waded after Terrorists
In constant fear of leeches and disease they were encumbered
But each and every one carried out the task that they were given
And they all wore their Uniform with pride
Even tho’ it was not their chosen profession
They fought with Regular Soldiers by their side
But sadly as is always the case in conflict
On the Battlefield many young Military men are lost
In order to defeat the Oppressors and the Tyrants
The sacrifice of Soldiers lives a terrible cost
But only when the 2 years were over
Then this Country’s young conscripts returned
And once again could follow their chosen career
With the knowledge of the Service Life they’d learned
But I don’t think the average man on the street
What a debt the World at large owed
To the National Servicemen who were paid a mere pittance
And on whom Honours were seldom bestowed