Western Daily Press (Saturday)
‘Today and forever We will remember them’
TAs we honour the war dead of the past, we also remember Ukraine’s fight for freedom today JAMES CLEVERLY
HE nation fell silent to remember the fallen on what might have been the warmest Armistice Day on record yesterday.
Poignant services were held across the country on the anniversary of the end of the First World War, and a two-minute silence was observed at 11am to remember those who had died in military conflicts.
The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended a service at the National Memorial Arboretum Armistice Day in Staffordshire, and there were services in London, Edinburgh, Belfast, Portsmouth and many other towns and cities.
Hundreds of veterans, serving personnel and members of the public marked Armistice Day at the National Memorial Arboretum.
The arboretum and its centrepiece white Portland stone Armed Forces Memorial, at Alrewas, near Lichfield, Staffordshire, provided the backdrop for an occasion of sombre reflection.
It was watched by hundreds of thousands of junior school children over a live stream as part of the Remembrance Live Assembly project, to teach youngsters about why the nation remembers all those who have died in service.
As the final notes of The Last Post drifted away over the memorial – inscribed with more than 16,000 names of service personnel killed on active duty since the end of the Second World War – the only noise that could be heard above the silence was the wind in the trees.
Mark Ellis, arboretum lead, told those gathered it was a time to “remember those who served and sacrificed for our country” and had given so much for future generations.
After the act of remembrance, trustee of the Royal British Legion, Anny Reid, delivered the exhortation: ‘We will remember them’.
Then a lone bugler from the Band of The Rifles played The Last Post, with its final notes marking the beginning of the two minutes’ silence.
Reveille was sounded, and the Defence Minister, Cheltenham MP Alex Chalk, read the Kohima Epitaph.
Afterwards, the focus shifted to the central plinth of the memorial as wreaths were laid by the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, members of the emergency services and the MP for Lichfield, Michael Fabricant.
Later, the Duke and Duchess put the finishing touches to the planting of an oak tree on the site, which forms part of the Queen’s Canopy – a nationwide project to plant more than a million trees to mark the late monarch’s Platinum Jubilee.
Earlier, Army veteran Major Rob Cross spoke about the importance of the Poppy Appeal and Armistice Day.
He was the third generation of his family to have served with the Army, and retired in 1997.
As a Royal Engineer, his postings included three years in Aden in the Middle East in the 1960s, and in the latter part of his career he was awarded a disaster relief medal by the King of Nepal after playing his part rebuilding and laying new bridges in the country following flooding in 1994.
As a volunteer at the memorial arboretum, the 80-year-old said: “For me it’s also important we continue to have remembrance on a day-to-day basis, so it’s nice for me to see the children coming to this site, as part of school visits.”
Mr Cross, of Rugeley, Staffordshire,
who designed and oversaw building of the arboretum site’s Gurkha Memorial, said: “It’s humbling to come here and to see people grieving, paying their respects and marking these moments.”
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who said Russia had “shattered” peace by waging war in Ukraine, was in Paris to attend a remembrance service hosted by French president Emmanuel Macron.
He said: “Since 1918 we have marked Armistice Day and paid tribute to the brave men and women who have served to give us peace.
“Yet as we salute our troops this year, this peace has been shattered by a Russian aggressor.
“As we honour the war dead of the past, we also remember Ukraine’s fight for freedom today.
“The UK stands steadfast with our friends and allies in defence of freedom and democracy in Ukraine and I am proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with an historic ally in Paris today.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tweeted: “Today and forever, we will remember them.”
And Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer joined veterans and railway staff outside Euston station, in central London, to mark the sombre moment.
Salvation Army captain Michael Kinnear played The Last Post before a two-minute silence was observed.
Leading a prayer for those who gave their lives defending Britain’s shores, Euston station railway chaplain Stephen Rowe said: “May we never forget the bravery and sacrifice, in the face of fearsome odds, the young and old who gave all, and the victories they won for our liberty.”
In Edinburgh, the city’s deputy lord provost, Councillor Lezley Marion Cameron, joined veterans, serving personnel and the public to pay tribute at the city’s Garden of Remembrance.
The short open-air service, led by Legion Scotland National Padre Rev Dr Karen Campbell, was followed by the laying of wreaths before the One O’Clock Gun fired at 11am from Edinburgh Castle.
The Met Office said there were “exceptionally mild” conditions across the UK as it predicted that yesterday could have been the warmest Armistice Day on record.
Temperatures across the four nations are in the mid-teens.