Armistice
Day - Remembrance Day - The forgotten heroes
Remembrance is not just about those who fought in the two World Wars
of the last century, but also about those involved in the many other
conflicts worldwide since 1945 and those still fighting for peace
and freedom now. It is also about learning from the past and resolving
to make the world a better place to live in the future.
Remembrance
Sunday, 14th of November 2004
National Service of Remembrance at the Cenotaph in Whitehall,
London. The Cenotaph ceremony was first held in 1921 as a unique expression
of national homage devoted to the remembrance of those who gave
their lives during the First World War. It was originally conceived
as a commemoration of the war dead of the United Kingdom, the Empire
(and subsequently the Commonwealth) and the British territories
overseas.
After the Second World War the scope of the ceremony was extended
to focus on the nation's dead of both World Wars, and in 1980 it
was widened once again to extend the remembrance to all who have
suffered and died in conflict in the service of their country and
all those who mourn them.
The service at the Cenotaph is framed to ensure that no-one is
forgotten. The wreath laid by The Queen and the other tributes
placed on the Cenotaph are dedicated to all who have suffered and
died in war. Members of the Cabinet, Opposition Party leaders,
former Prime Ministers and certain other Ministers and the Mayor
of London are invited to attend the ceremony by the Lord Chancellor
on behalf of the Cabinet, along with representatives of the Armed
Forces, Merchant Air and Navy and Fishing Fleets, civilian services
and members of faith communities. High Commissioners from Commonwealth
countries also attend the ceremony and lay wreaths at the Cenotaph.
To watch the ceremony it is essential to be in place well in advance.
The assembly of the military and other participants begins at about
10.00 a.m; Commonwealth High Commissioners and politicians join
at around 1040 and the Royal Family, led by HM The Queen are in
position just before 11.00 a.m.
The Service and wreath-laying last about 25 minutes, after which
the Royal Family, politicians and High Commissioners depart.
Wreath laying by leaders of the principal ex-Service organisations
then takes place, followed by the march past of some 10,000 ex-Service
men and women. They are followed by a contingent from London Buses
(To mark the use of London buses and drivers as troop transport
in France during WWI) and other civilian groups, making the parade
representative of the whole nation and the Commonwealth.
Two Minute Silence – November 11th at 11.00am
The Royal British
Legion strongly supports and will always put its full weight
behind
the traditional Remembrance Sunday services
and the customary Two-Minute Silence. The Legion, the national
custodian of Remembrance, founded among other reasons to ensure
that... "we will remember them"...believes that it is
entirely appropriate that Remembrance should be brought into the
everyday life of the Nation on 11th November, whatever day of the
week that may be. Support from industry, commerce, institutions
and from all walks of life is substantial and the Legion is calling
for this to happen again in 2003.Remembrance transcends all boundaries.
The Legion is seeking a small yet significant individual and collective
act, a rare moment when the Nation can stand together and reflect
on the price of freedom. That price is still being paid. More than
12,000 British Servicemen and women have been killed or injured
on active service since 1945."If we are to maintain our peace
and freedom we must always remember".
How the Poppy
Appeal began
Canadian doctor
John McCrae was serving in Flanders with the Canadian Armed Forces
when, having seen the poppy survive the bloody conflicts in northern
France, he wrote his 1915 poem In Flanders’ Fields.
In
Flanders’ fields
the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders’ fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe;
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high,
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders’ fields.
Moina Michael,
an American War Secretary with the YMCA, was moved by
this poem to buy poppies with money collected from her work colleagues,
and sold them to friends to raise funds for ex-Servicemen. Her
French
colleague, Madame Guerin, suggested the sale of artificial poppies
to
the Legion in August 1921 in order to help the ex-Service community
in
Britain.
The first donations
for artificial poppies were given in Britain on 11
November 1921, raising £106,000 – an equivalent spending
power of more
than £3.1million in today’s terms, a huge sum for the
time.
Major George
Howson, a young infantry officer, had formed the Disabled
Society to help disabled ex-Service people from World War One.
Howson
suggested to the Legion that Society members should make poppies,
and
the artificial flowers were designed so that someone who had lost
the
use of a hand could assemble them with one hand – a principle
that has
endured. This suggestion led to the foundation of the Poppy Factory
at
Richmond, Surrey, in 1922, where poppies are still made today.
Major Events
During Remembrance
Monday 8th November
Garden of Remembrance
Planting of Remembrance crosses at St Paul’s Cathedral
For information contact: Ann-Mari Burt - 020 7973 7237 or aburt@britishlegion.org.uk
Thursday 11th November
Welsh National Garden of Remembrance
Planting of Remembrance Crosses at Cathay’s Park, Cardiff
For information contact: Charlie Carty – 02920 372626 or ccarty@britishlegion.org.uk
Thursday 11th November
Armistice Day
The Two Minute Silence at 11am
For information contact: Jeremy Lillies – 020 7973 7265 or jlillies@britishlegion.org.uk
Thursday 11th November
Field of Remembrance
Royal planting of Remembrance crosses at the Field of Remembrance,
Westminster Abbey.
For information contact: Ann-Mari Burt - 020 7973 7237or aburt@britishlegion.org.uk
Saturday 13th November
The Lord Mayor’s Show, London
For information contact: Lisa Penwarden - 020 7973 7280 or
lpenwarden@britishlegion.org.uk
Saturday 13th November
Festival of Remembrance
The Legion’s own special tribute at The Royal Albert Hall
For information contact: Alan Purdie – 020 7973 7253 or apurdie@britishlegion.org.uk
Sunday 14th November
Remembrance Sunday
The Cenotaph Parade, Whitehall
For information contact: Jeremy Lillies - 020 7973 7265 or jlillies@britishlegion.org.uk
For further information about Legion events visit: http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/helpus/events.asp
Related
Links
Royal
British Legion
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