Remembrance Day Services 1: 2003-2021


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All gave some. Some gave all. Their heart belonged to the Country. Their soul belonged to the Nation. Never forget their gift of Freedom, to us all.
 
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the unveiling of the Cenotaph and the burial of the Unknown Warrior, so it's particularly sad that the usual events couldn't take place, but I thought it was managed very well.


It's actually the first time we've seen the senior Royals together en masse since before the first lockdown started.
 
Heavs said:
Malta (also laying on behalf of Cyprus)
Bangladesh (also laying on behalf of India, Pakistan, Singapore and Malaysia)
Malawi (also laying on behalf of all the African countries in the Commonwealth)
Papua New Guinea (also laying on behalf of Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga)
St Vincent and the Grenadines (also on behalf of Canada, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Domenique and Belize)

As well as the Ambassadors for the Republic of Ireland and Nepal.
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Interesting. I would imagine that the High Commissioners of the countries that contributed the most to the war effort besides the UK (I suppose, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, and South Africa) should be the ones laying the wreaths, but they were represented instead by other smaller countries in the same geographic region. I wonder how the five representatives were chosen.
 
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Mbruno said:
Interesting. I would imagine that the High Commissioners of the countries that contributed the most to the war effort besides the UK (I suppose, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, and South Africa) should be the ones laying the wreaths, but they were represented instead by other smaller countries in the same geographic region. I wonder how the five representatives were chosen.
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That's why Ireland and Nepal were included (Ireland sent 200,000 men pre partition and independence).

As Durham said it was one from each continent so it wasn't going to be Australia and New Zealand.

I don't know how each was chosen though. A raffle or even because they're smaller nations who don't normally get a look in?
 
Maybe based on which Ambassador's had been in post longest for each region? It was a good way to deal with not being able to have all the High Commissioners there.
 
Masks probably will be a way of life until that vaccine is ready and I hope soon. I am rather dubious about harry wanting to attend since there are travel restrictions in place. Last year without this virus it would have been more feasible. I do hope he takes part in some events to honor veterans in the US.
 
Heavs said:
That's why Ireland and Nepal were included (Ireland sent 200,000 men pre partition and independence).
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Up until the late 1930's,the Irish Governor-General laid a wreath at the Cenotaph on behalf of the fallen, now its done by the Irish Ambassador to the UK.
 
tommy100 said:
Maybe based on which Ambassador's had been in post longest for each region? It was a good way to deal with not being able to have all the High Commissioners there.
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That would be my guess as well: based on seniority.
 
An Ard Ri said:
Up until the late 1930's,the Irish Governor-General laid a wreath at the Cenotaph on behalf of the fallen, now its done by the Irish Ambassador to the UK.
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Yes that's relatively new of course & has been a very welcome product of the normalisation of relations across our isles.

Irish men from all parts of the island fought with distinction during the first war & of course tens of thousands from Ireland south of the border helped in the struggle against fascism in the second.
 
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Durham said:
Yes that's relatively new of course & has been a very welcome product of the normalisation of relations across our isles.
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Ireland hasn't been part of the commonwealth for a long long time... and so there hasn't been a governor general....
 
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Durham said:
Yes I know. For political reasons of course there was no representative from the Republic of Ireland at the cenotaph until 2014. The fact that the Irish ambassador now attends is a welcome development.
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I agree.. it was very sad years ago... that there was this bitterness. And a lot of irish men served in WW2
 
This thread is about the solemn occasion that is Remembrance Day not anything else. Thank you.
 
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A number of completely off topic posts have been deleted. This thread is for discussion of the Remembrance Day Services, and not for unrelated discussions about members of the British royal family. Any further posts along those lines will be deleted without notice.
 
Mbruno said:
Interesting. I would imagine that the High Commissioners of the countries that contributed the most to the war effort besides the UK (I suppose, Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, and South Africa) should be the ones laying the wreaths, but they were represented instead by other smaller countries in the same geographic region. I wonder how the five representatives were chosen.
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I would have thought the choice was fairly logical based on actual fighting:

Malta fought the Germans for so long and so hard that the entire island was awarded the George Cross (of course Cyprus was also attacked but if only one of those two was to be chosen Malta makes sense).

Bangladesh was close to the fighting as it borders Burma (modern day Myanmar) where the main British fighting against the Japanese on land took place. So again the logical choice (and at the time Bangladesh was part of India so any Bangladeshi troops would have been part of the Indian army). If Burma was still part of the Commonwealth I would have expected Burma to have been chosen.

PNG makes perfect sense as that was where the Aussie, NZers and other Pacific Island troops fought and were the first to stop the Japanese land forces before pushing them back and out of PNG.

The other two aren't as obvious as the fighting in Africa didn't get as far south as Malawi in WWII but there was fighting in East Africa in WWI. We often forget that there were campaigns throughout Africa during that war.
 
Iluvbertie said:
I would have thought the choice was fairly logical based on actual fighting:

Malta fought the Germans for so long and so hard that the entire island was awarded the George Cross (of course Cyprus was also attacked but if only one of those two was to be chosen Malta makes sense).

Bangladesh was close to the fighting as it borders Burma (modern day Myanmar) where the main British fighting against the Japanese on land took place. So again the logical choice (and at the time Bangladesh was part of India so any Bangladeshi troops would have been part of the Indian army). If Burma was still part of the Commonwealth I would have expected Burma to have been chosen.

PNG makes perfect sense as that was where the Aussie, NZers and other Pacific Island troops fought and were the first to stop the Japanese land forces before pushing them back and out of PNG.

The other two aren't as obvious as the fighting in Africa didn't get as far south as Malawi in WWII but there was fighting in East Africa in WWI. We often forget that there were campaigns throughout Africa during that war.
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That's really interesting thank you.
 
Saluting

I truly don't know the answer to this - nor if it would/wouldn't be an appropriate gesture for her ... but since HM was viewing from the balcony, would she have breeched any sort of protocol had she saluted as each of the wreaths were being laid down?
 
Yes - she wasn't in uniform so it is against protocol to salute.
 
Osipi said:
Just adding a bit here seeing as the US Veteran's Day is tomorrow on the 11th. I ran across this bit of information about wearing the poppy and really didn't know all the significance of just how it's worn before. I was wondering if it was the same with the poppies worn in the UK.

https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.ne...=edde5ea03d3c3a19973ba4fc0854d6fe&oe=5FD0674A
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I don't know sorry. I've not comes across this before. Poppies here do have a green leaf attached very often. There's the Canadian poppy as well of course.
 
Thanks for that link Osipi , it is very interesting information. I am about to go out for exercise and I put my poppy on the left, so now I have repositioned it to the right side. It is Wednesday 11th 5.30 am here. In Sydney it is 6.30 am due to that state having daylight saving.
 
Our TV presenters are wearing the poppy on the left, so I googled which side to wear it and it said that men wear it on the left and some women wear it on the right. The Queen wears here's on the left.
 
I have always worn mine on the left, I think I remember something about it being closer the heart but I can't say for sure.
 
Heavs said:
I have always worn mine on the left, I think I remember something about it being closer the heart but I can't say for sure.
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There is some idea that men wear on the left and women on the rights.. but I always have had great trouble keeping it pinned ot my coat, and I fix it as best i can....
 
Remembrance Day Services 1919


1936


1938


1949

 
Heavs said:
I have always worn mine on the left, I think I remember something about it being closer the heart but I can't say for sure.
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I've heard that too - to be honest I just wear mine on whichever part of my chest is closest to me when I'm putting my coat on!
 
I can honestly say that I've never seen anyone wearing a poppy for Memorial Day or Veteran's Day. Do any of our other American posters recall seeing poppies for sale or people wearing them?


https://www.alaforveterans.org/Poppy/


Personally I would love to see this tradition of wearing one catch on in the U.S.A.
 
TLLK said:
I can honestly say that I've never seen anyone wearing a poppy for Memorial Day or Veteran's Day. Do any of our other American posters recall seeing poppies for sale or people wearing them?


https://www.alaforveterans.org/Poppy/


Personally I would love to see this tradition of wearing one catch on in the U.S.A.
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Growing up, my family was very involved with the local VFW my dad belonged to. We *always* wore poppies for Veteran's Day and sometimes even helped with selling them in public. Memorial Day usually involved picnics after really getting in the spirit for a Memorial Day parade which my dad always participated in to the max and of course, so was his family. I don't really recall poppies for Memorial Day that much either.

Of course the biggest story ever told surrounding my dad's time in the service was how my mother had to "run away" to marry my dad. She took a train from Detroit to Oceanside, California and married my dad just before he shipped out overseas with the Navy in WWII. I still have the rhinestone American flag she proudly wore every day while he was gone. Now that's a vintage item I'll hold onto dearly. :D
 
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