Branch Visits (International)
100th Armistice Anniversary Poppy Parade
11th November 2018 At Ypres
11th November 2018 At Ypres
Four branch members travelled to Ypres for the 100th Armistice and took part as marshalls for the Poppy Parade.
The idea for The Poppy Parade was originated in the early 1990s by Lieutenant-Colonel (Retd) Graham Parker, OBE; it takes its inspiration from the poem by John McCrae In Flanders Fields, which was written close to Ypres in the spring of 1915. With the increased numbers of people attending the Armistice Day ceremony at the Menin Gate Memorial in the 1990s it was becoming necessary to manage the crowds.
One Armistice Day Graham had met an Australian couple who were very disappointed to have travelled such a long way to be in Ypres for the 11.00 hours ceremony, but who could not get close to the Menin Gate for it. They had been to the morning service at St. George's Memorial Church but on leaving the service there were many people already crowded on the pavements between the Menin Gate and the market square and they found they could not stand anywhere near the Menin Gate Memorial. This inspired Graham, who assisted on the Special Events Committee for Ypres, to develop an idea to enable members of the public with the opportunity to walk from St. George's Memorial Church to The Menin Gate in a formal parade, to pass through the arch of the memorial shortly before the start of the ceremony, and to stand in a specially allocated area east of the Memorial.
A Poppy Petal is offered to everyone on The Poppy Parade. Everyone participating in The Poppy Parade is offered a Royal British Legion Poppy Petal to carry in The Poppy Parade from the forming up area near St. George's Memorial Church to The Menin Gate Memorial. On reaching The Menin Gate Memorial the Poppy Petals are collected in special baskets.
During the 11.00 hours ceremony the Poppy Petals carried by The Poppy Parade are released from the roof of the Menin Gate. This is a very special moment which has become an integral part of the annual ceremony at the Menin Gate every year since then.
The idea for The Poppy Parade was originated in the early 1990s by Lieutenant-Colonel (Retd) Graham Parker, OBE; it takes its inspiration from the poem by John McCrae In Flanders Fields, which was written close to Ypres in the spring of 1915. With the increased numbers of people attending the Armistice Day ceremony at the Menin Gate Memorial in the 1990s it was becoming necessary to manage the crowds.
One Armistice Day Graham had met an Australian couple who were very disappointed to have travelled such a long way to be in Ypres for the 11.00 hours ceremony, but who could not get close to the Menin Gate for it. They had been to the morning service at St. George's Memorial Church but on leaving the service there were many people already crowded on the pavements between the Menin Gate and the market square and they found they could not stand anywhere near the Menin Gate Memorial. This inspired Graham, who assisted on the Special Events Committee for Ypres, to develop an idea to enable members of the public with the opportunity to walk from St. George's Memorial Church to The Menin Gate in a formal parade, to pass through the arch of the memorial shortly before the start of the ceremony, and to stand in a specially allocated area east of the Memorial.
A Poppy Petal is offered to everyone on The Poppy Parade. Everyone participating in The Poppy Parade is offered a Royal British Legion Poppy Petal to carry in The Poppy Parade from the forming up area near St. George's Memorial Church to The Menin Gate Memorial. On reaching The Menin Gate Memorial the Poppy Petals are collected in special baskets.
During the 11.00 hours ceremony the Poppy Petals carried by The Poppy Parade are released from the roof of the Menin Gate. This is a very special moment which has become an integral part of the annual ceremony at the Menin Gate every year since then.
The Branch Battlefield Tour
In 2002, the branch began organising bi-annual battlefield tours, to the Western Front. Originally, there were six members on the tours, this has now risen to fourteen on the last two trips.
On the last four tours, we have rented two self-catering gites, in the village of Ablain St Nazaire, near Arras. This has enabled us to visit both the Somme and Ypres, as well as the area in and around Arras itself.
As well as visiting the battlefields themselves, our tours include visits to Great War Museums, such as Lens 14-18, Souchez, Peronne Great War Museum and Wellington Tunnels, to name but a few. We have followed in the footsteps of members’ relatives, to see where they fought, and in some cases died. Visits are made to cemeteries to pay respects to the men on our town and village War Memorials, that we have researched, as well as personal pilgrimages to family members who gave their lives.
After having two tours cancelled due to covid, we were once again able to visit France and Belgium in 2022. Below is a slideshow and pictures of our two most recent Battlefield Tour. |
2018 Battlefield Tour Slideshow
Battlefield tour 2022 in pictures
Day 1
Day 2 Arras,
Day 4 The Somme
Day 5 The Somme
Day 6 The Somme & The End of The Tour
Remembering The Unknown Soldiers Of The Great War