By Beds SU
Wednesday, 9 November 2022
“At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month – we will remember them.”
Activities to mark Armistice Day or Remembrance Day (as it is also known) take place both on the named day and days, week before. This can include ceremonies at war memorials, cenotaphs, churches throughout the country, as well as abroad. The anniversary is used to remember all those who have died in wars - not just WWI.
The first two-minute silence in Britain was held on 11 November 1919, a year after the war ended, as requested by King George V asked the public to observe a silence so “the thoughts of everyone may be concentrated on reverent remembrance of the glorious dead.”
Why Poppies are symbolic
As a mark of respect, people may also decide to wear poppies throughout the month of November, issued each year by the British Legion, with donations going to support the Armed Forces community. Poppies have been worn for over a 100 years and became the symbol of rememberance because they are the flowers that grew on the battlefields after the war ended, due to the conditions the war created for them to flourish. This is described in the famous WWI Poem in Flanders Fields by John McCrae and listed on the Poetry Foundation’s website:
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.
Although the British Legion adopted the poppy as the symbol of remembrance, the woman who bought the idea to them, Anna Guérin is less known, you can find out more about Anna here.
Other facts include:
- The poppy is a symbol of remembrance and hope for a peaceful future
- There is no correct way to wear a poppy
- The poppy is red because that is the natural colour of the poppy flower
For more information on Remembrance Day and the history of the poppy, please visit the British Legion’s website.
How will the University mark Remembrance Day:
The Vice Chancellor along with the Treehouse Community and members of your Exec Officer team will lead the University’s Service of Remembrance on Friday 11th November, in the Gallery Space, Luton campus from 10.45am. The 30 minute service, including a two minute silence will be livestreamed for other campuses to join online, for details please head to our events page.