Armistice day was the 11th of November 1918 it is the day that papers were signed in Le Francport to end hostilities in WW1. The four year war described as "the war to end all wars" was a bloody affair with over 70 million troops involved and at its end 9 million troops and some 13 million citizens had lost their lives.
My piece today is not so much about these events but about how each year we commemorate their loss and service to their countries. Every year in the UK and across the world we honor their sacrifice to the cause with a day of remembrance and to show our respect we wear a poppy, a symbol lifted from a poem by John McCrae a Canadian who's friend had died in battle the day before.
In 2018 to commemorate the 100 year anniversary all across the UK a special thing happened, the year before farmers or any land owners who could were encouraged to plant poppy seeds throughout their land, twelve months later from June till winter a stunning reminder of a sad time in world history could be witnessed.
I have chosen today to post about this as although Armistice day is 11th November, the launch of the Centenary commemorations had been a year long event and the poppy display was at it 's strongest in summer time so my photo's here are from June, also it is the day my great great grandfather died in 1918 at the Third Battle of the Aisne one of the 137,000 allied troops to perish in a 10 day period.
We shall remember them.
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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.
John McCrae.