Armistice Day - Day of Remembrance, Nov. 11-13

Several weeks before November 11 we started seeing poppy boutonnieres on TV personalities and people in the streets.  Even more TV programs than usual emphasized some aspect of war stories.  My impression is that Armistice Day plays a larger role here than it does in the US. On November 11 itself,  the nation pauses for 2 minutes of silence.  I hadn't heard of any commemoration in Cambridge, so I watched the television at 11 AM.  Scenes at war memorials across the UK were broadcast with everyone standing at attention and saluting.  Children in schools stood in silence. The newspaper showed a picture of bank employees all lined up in silent attention.  A woman I spoke with told me how her bus had stopped for the 2 minutes of silence.

On Saturday the Festival of Remembrance concert was held in Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Family in attendance.  The evening culminates in a procession of service men and women and poppies fluttering down from the ceiling.

On Sunday, the 2 minutes of silence at 11 AM was repeated.  We were at church and the procession that is normally accompanied by a hymn was silent.  Later in the day we saw a replay of the day's activities in London. The queen laid a wreath of poppies at the foot of the Cenotaph, the empty grave memorial on Whitehall and then other family members did likewise.  Many more wreaths were laid on the site. This was followed by a long procession of medal-adorned service and service-related veterans from WW II  and beyond (the last WW I veteran died this past year) and from various Commonwealth countries.

The whole custom of wearing a poppy is not without controversy.  A minor issue that assumed major proportions was whether or not the soccer teams for England and Wales would be able to wear the poppy on their uniforms ("kits") for their international games this past weekend (they were allowed to wear the poppy on an armband).  A more subtle issue brought up in one editorial is whether or not wearing the poppy has become like wearing a US flag in one's lapel--a politically correct observance denoting patriotism.  There are also white poppies for Quakers and those who oppose war.

Remembrance Observance in Dover