General Chat

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7720601.stm

Three of the four surviving British veterans of World War I are to help mark the 90th anniversary of the end of the conflict.
Henry Allingham, 112, Harry Patch, 110, and Bill Stone, 108, will represent the RAF, Army and Royal Navy respectively at a ceremony at London's Cenotaph. They will lead the country in observing two minutes' silence from 1100 GMT.

Among other Armistice Day events across Europe, Prince Charles will lay a wreath at a battle site in France.

The three veterans will do the same at the Cenotaph, in Whitehall, as part of the service which is the centrepiece of the 90th anniversary commemorations in Britain.

The two-minute silence at 1100 GMT marks the moment - at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month - when the Armistice Treaty was signed by the Allies and Germany to end four years of conflict

Mr Allingham - the world's oldest World War I veteran and the UK's oldest man - is looking forward to the event which he holds particularly dear. The veteran, who is partially deaf and nearly blind, said he would like to forget the horrors of a war he fought nine decades ago - but cannot.
"Well, it was a time, that I recall, I saw too many things I would like to forget but I will never forget them, I never can forget them," he said.

Mr Allingham released an autobiography last September in the hope that, as the last of the World War I veterans disappear, their story will live on.

Dennis Goodwin, chairman of the World War One Veterans' Association, said the three veterans' presence at the ceremony was "tremendous".
He added: "These men suffered the horrors of a war and they had to then face a life of uncertainty - the Great Depression and the aftermath of the war.
"They had little or no help for any of the traumas they suffered and no help from the government, and they created our generation."

Accompanying the veterans throughout will be current representatives of the armed forces, Marine Mkhuseli Jones, Military Cross, Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry, Victoria Cross, and Flight Lieutenant Michelle Goodman, Distinguished Flying Cross.

The service will be led by the Bishop to the Armed Forces, the Right Reverend David Conner.

The three veterans will meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown at a Downing Street reception afterwards.

The fourth surviving British veteran, Claude Choules, 107, lives in Australia and is due to attend events there.

Last week, veteran Sydney Lucas died at the age of 108. He had been one of the last conscripts called up in 1918, although peace was declared before he was sent to the trenches.

A ceremony at the National Memorial Arboretum, in Alrewas, Staffordshire, will also include a two-minute silence at 1100 GMT, and a Royal Air Force flypast.
The memorial was designed so that at 1100 GMT on 11 November, a shaft of sunlight passes through it to illuminate a wreath on the central plinth.
The Royal Family will be represented there by Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

The French and German armies clashed there in 1916, and the site has since become a symbol of Franco-German reconciliation.

Thanks again Joy

Will try to note 11:00 today as will be out and about, if the weather allows

We will never forget

Linda :o)

Harry Patch also has a brilliant book, 'The Last Tommy'.

For Great uncle Private William Ayling of the Royal Fusiliers died 22/09/1917 Passchendale

and Great Grandad George Scott of the Rifle Brigade
died 03/06/1917.

Both remembered with pride and honour.

Love

Sue

xxxxxxxxxx

To my best schoolmate Mark, killed whilst serving with 22nd Regiment.
Hold King Arthur's excalibur high and proud.

Lest we forget
x

silent nudge,

Remembering all the FALLEN, in the Great War and those since.

From Maid Marion's post

(The fourth surviving British veteran, Claude Choules, 107, lives in Australia and is due to attend events there.)

Proud to include him in my tree, our grandfathers were brothers.

Jennifer

I have just returned from attending an 'Act of Remembrance' in our town's market square.

It was marvellous to see so many standard bearers, the mayor and so many ex-servicemen standing in silence, with a large crowd of us ordinary folk, as a trumpeter from the town band played the last post.

We will remember them.

Elisabeth

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7720601.stm

The three veterans were met with a round of applause as they were wheeled to the Cenotaph for the ceremony.
Lit up by rays of winter sunshine, the men watched silently as their armed forces representatives laid wreaths on their behalf, one by one.
The ceremony formed the core of Britain's most important service to mark the 90th anniversary Armistice Day commemorations.

At 1100 GMT, a two-minute silence marked the moment - at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month - when the Armistice Treaty signed by the Allies and Germany to end four years of conflict came into effect.

Mr Allingham - the world's oldest World War I veteran and the UK's oldest man - said: "I'm glad to be here. It means a lot to me. I hope people realise what my pals sacrificed on their behalf."
The last-known survivor of the Battle of Jutland, who is partially deaf and nearly blind, said his comrades should never be forgotten, and he could not describe what they meant to him.
Mr Allingham released an autobiography last September in the hope that, as the last of the World War I veterans disappear, their story will live on.

Former sailor Bill Stone said: "I shall never forget it. I was one of the lucky ones and I'm thankful for that. Of course they should be remembered. If it wasn't for them [those who died] we wouldn't be here."

Dennis Goodwin, chairman of the World War One Veterans' Association, said the three veterans' presence at the ceremony was "tremendous".
He added: "These men suffered the horrors of a war and they had to then face a life of uncertainty - the Great Depression and the aftermath of the war.
They had little or no help for any of the traumas they suffered and no help from the government, and they created our generation."

Accompanying the veterans throughout were their modern representatives: Marine Mkhuseli Jones, who holds the Military Cross; Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry, who has the Victoria Cross; and Flight Lieutenant Michelle Goodman, a holder of the Distinguished Flying Cross.

The service was led by the Bishop to the Armed Forces, the Right Reverend David Conner.

The three veterans met Prime Minister Gordon Brown at a Downing Street reception afterwards.

The fourth surviving British veteran, Claude Choules, 107, lives in Australia and was due to attend events there.

as we that are left grow old ...

By whom and where the poppies are made for the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal -

copy and paste:
http://www.poppyfactory.org/index.html

"Why do we still march?"

Why do you still march, old man,
with those medals on your chest?
Why do you still grieve, old man, for
those you laid to rest?

Why do your eyes still gleam, old man,
when you hear those bugles blow?
Tell me why you cry, old man,
for those days so long ago.

I'll tell you why I march, young man,
with those medals on my chest.
I'll tell you why I grieve, young man,
for those friends I laid to rest.

Through misty folds of gossamer silk,
come visions of distant times, when
boys of very tender age,
marched forth to different climes.

We buried them in a blanket shroud,
their young flesh scorched and blackened,
a communal grave, newly gouged,
in the blood-stained gorse and bracken.

And you ask me why I march, young man?
I march to remind you all,
But for those apple blossom youths,
you'd never have known freedom at all.

Written by the then 90-year-old Bill Ridley.


Read on Armistice Day, 11th November 1999, by Richard Cartridge, on Radio Solent.

Thank you Joy

This always makes me sad , and at the same time appreciative of an enlightened Man .

In 1934, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who led the fighting Turks at Gallipoli and became founder of the Turkish Republic in 1923, paid tribute to the Anzacs:

Those heroes that shed their blood And lost their lives...
You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country.
Therefore, rest in peace.
There is no difference between the Johnnies
And the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side,
Here in this country of ours.
You, the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries...
Wipe away your tears.
Your sons are now lying in our bosom
And are in peace.
After having lost their lives on this land, they have
Become our sons as well.


George

Shane,

I've bookmarked that YouTube link.

The song is beautiful.

Kath. x

WHY WEAR A POPPY?

Please wear a poppy, the lady said,
And held one forth, but I shook my head.

Then I stopped and watched as she offered them there
And her face was old and lined with care.

But beneath the scars the years had made
There remained a smile that refused to fade

A boy came whistling down the street
Bouncing along on carefree feet

His smile was full of joy and fun
Lady, he said, may I have one?

When she pinned it on he turned to say
Why do we wear a poppy today?

The lady smiled in her wistful way
And answered this is Remembrance Day

And the poppy here is the symbol for
The gallant men who died in the war.

And because they did you and I are free
That’s why we wear a poppy you see.

I had a boy about your size
With golden hair and big blue eyes

He loved to play and jump and shout
Free as a bird he would race about

As the years went by he learned and grew
And became a man - as you will too.

He was fine and strong, with a boyish smile
But he seemed with us such a little while.

When war broke out, he went away.
I still remember his face that day

Then he smiled at me and said goodbye
I'll be back soon mum, so please don't cry.

But the war went on and he had to stay
And all I could do was wait and pray

His letters told of the awful fight
(I can still see it in my dreams at night)

With the tanks and the guns and the cruel barbed wire
And the mines and the bullets, the bombs and the fire.

Till at last, the war was won
That’s why we wear a poppy son.

The small boy turned as if to go
Then said 'thanks lady” I'm glad to know

That sure did sound like an awful fight
But your son - did he come home alright?'

A tear rolled down each faded cheek
She shook her head but didn't speak.

I slunk away in a sort of shame
And if you were me you'd have done the same.

For our thanks, in giving, is oft delayed
Though our freedom was bought - and thousands paid.

And so when you see a poppy worn
Let us reflect on the burden borne

By those who gave their very all
When asked to answer their country's call

That we at home in peace might live,
And then wear a poppy,
Remember - and give.

Please give as much as you can for each poppy - it's such a worthwhile cause and needed more today than ever.

Kath. x

Thank you.


Not disrespectful at all about the horses :-)

- I saw the following inscription next to a wreath and a picture of a horse's face, during a battlefields tour:

"Remembering the Horses and all other creatures that died or suffered in the service of man in time of war and to the personnel of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps and equivalent foreign services who cared for the sick and wounded."

Hi Rita

My husband and son have taken a copy of it to work every year since I first found this poem (I think it was here on Genes). It makes people stop and think.

We should also remember that not only did young men (and women) give up their lives for us, but all of their family and friends had their lives altered and things were never the same again for them.

Buying a poppy to help the British Legion carry on their work is the least we can do.

Kath. x