Manawatu¯ marks centenary
The wider Manawatu¯ fell silent, then the bells rang out, just as they did 100 years ago at the end of the Great War.
Armistice Day commemorations were held around Manawatu¯ yesterday, marking 100 years since the end of World War I on November 11 1918.
The guns famously fell silent on the Western Front on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.
Services were held in Palmerston North, Feilding, Woodville, Pahı¯atua, Dannevirke, Levin, Foxton, and Hunterville. Wreathes were laid, The Last Post was played and people remembered the Kiwi soldiers who had fought and sacrificed their lives
The bells rang out at the Palmerston North service at the cenotaph in The Square, while there was a helicopter fly over, a march by past and present service men and women, and a performance by the New Zealand Army Band.
Lieutenant Colonel Peter Hall, Chief of Staff 1st HQ Brigade, delivered the service address.
After the Palmerston North service, mayor Grant Smith announced the next seven streets and monuments to be added to Poppy Places, which identifies places in New Zealand eponymously linked to the country’s military involvement.
The new additions are the the Soldiers’ Club building on the corner of Cuba and George Sts, the Awapuni Medical Corps Memorial at the racecourse, Awatea Terrace in Hokowhitu, Memorial Park, the Ma¯ori Battalion Hall on the corner of Cuba and Pitt Sts, as well as Milson streets Leander Place and Mcgregor St.
There are now 29 streets or sites of significance on the list, with poppies on the road signs denoting their wartime connection.
‘‘The poppies are the most easily recognisable symbol of courage and sacrifice,’’ Smith said.