Remembrance Day also known as Poppy Day or Armistice Day is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth countries since the end of World War 1 to remember the members of their armed forces who died in the line of duty.
Remembrance day is observed on 11th November to recall the end of hostilities of World War 1 on that date in 1918. Hostilities formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in accordance with World War 1 offcially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailies on 28th June 1919.
The day was specifically dedicated by King George V on 7th November 1919 as a day of remembrance for members of the armed forces who were killed during World War 1.
The initial or very first armistice day was held at Buckingham Palace commencing with King George V hosting a banquet in honour of the president of the French Republic during the evening hours of 10th November 1919. The first official armistice day was subsequently held on the grounds of Buckingham Palace on the morning of 11th November 1919. This would set the trend for a day of Remembrance for decades to come.
The red Remembrance Poppy has become a familiar emblem of Remembrance Day due to the poem "In Flanders Fields". These poppies bloomed across some of the worst battlefields of Flanders in World War 1, their brilliant red colour an appropriate symbol for the blood spilled in the war.
In the United Kingdom, the main observance is on the Sunday nearest to 11th November, Remembrance Sunday with two minutes of silence observed on 11th November itself, a custom which had lapsed before a campaign for its revival began in the 1990's
So on Remembrance Sunday please take the time out to remember all that losted they lives and wear your Poppy's with pride.
Written by Thereza
