Armistice day Saturday 11th November 2023

[trevskoda]

Most of the n ireland and some down south were lost in both wars, 36 ulster div at the somme was a hugh loss.

 

[SimonM]

Here’s one of my grandad, I don’t know where he was but it looks warm, far right with the dog

 

[SimonM]

And another of t’other grandad where I know it would be cold - Reykjavik in Iceland upper middle of the group, colorised

 

[SimonM]

I really miss being able to ask them about their exploits, but they’d gone before I realised I needed to talk to them.

The same is true of my uncle Bill who was part of the team with Frank Whittle when together they invented the jet engine. I only found that out after he’d passed.

 

[RichardHelen262]

 

[zzr1400tim]

not long back from a birthday party for one of my granddaughters at the Snowdome in Tamworth. Apparently the two minutes silence was not observed there at 11.00am. None of the staff were wearing poppies. In fact hardly anyone was apart from a few oldies like myself .. ah well
at least my cat wears her poppy with pride

 

[colinm]

View attachment 124792

This reminds me of an incidence some years back, we where walking through the graveyard at Crantock when I noticed a SAS wreath, it wasn't on a grave and I didn't see a name so was quite intrigued, a few days later was talking to a local shop keeper who I've known for some time and mentioned it, she said "O that was for John", as I must have looked quite blank, she said "You know him, had the roundhouse", well I was stunned, he was a little short tubby chap who always reminded me of me grandfather, you could probably never have seen someone who looked so far removed from what you might expect a member of SAS to look like.

 

[colinm]

not long back from a birthday party for one of my granddaughters at the Snowdome in Tamworth. Apparently the two minutes silence was not observed there at 11.00am. None of the staff were wearing poppies. In fact hardly anyone was apart from a few oldies like myself .. ah well
at least my cat wears her poppy with pride

I parked some distance away from hospital and walked across town, I became aware that nobody was wearing poppies, on the walk there and back later in morning must have seen hundreds of people, I never saw any poppies, as I got seen early I got back before 11am and popped into B&M and at 10:45 they announced they would be hold silence at 11, by 11 I was back in car and sat in remembrance whilst all the shoppers seemed oblivious to the time as they walked past the car.

 

[zzr1400tim]

I parked some distance away from hospital and walked across town, I became aware that nobody was wearing poppies, on the walk there and back later in morning must have seen hundreds of people, I never saw any poppies, as I got seen early I got back before 11am and popped into B&M and at 10:45 they announced they would be hold silence at 11, by 11 I was back in car and sat in remembrance whilst all the shoppers seemed oblivious to the time as they walked past the car.

fair play to B&M though.
Sadly the remembrance act is being neglected and forgotten by more recent generations.
I remember several years ago, while the two minutes silence was being observed on a remembrance Sunday, I was standing quietly in my living room while watching the event on TV from the Cenotaph.
I could not believe what happened. A scrap metal van came up the road blowing its "any-old-iron" horn during the silence
after the silence finished I stormed out of the house and "remonstrated" with the perpetrators (Eastern block "tatters")
surprisingly a number of my fellow neighbors also came out and gave them a good tongue lashing too..
The look of total surprise on the miscreants faces said it all..
They honestly didn't realise what they had done as it meant nowt to them

 

[trevskoda]

Fact is its a thing of the past, in a few hundred years it will be just mentioned in old books or online, just like many battles back in time.

 

[oppy]

I remember just a few years ago as we were walking back from Manchester Cathedral on the 1th (the chapel of the Manchester Reg) to the station and as we passed a pub a chap outside suddenly jumped to his feet and snapped to attention. Sue was wearing her granddads ribbons and I had my dads and we were so touched, I told him to stand easy then bought him a drink.
Today though we had quite a good turn out in the town square and a nice little service.

 

[Trotter]

Fact is its a thing of the past, in a few hundred years it will be just mentioned in old books or online, just like many battles back in time.

This is one of the few things that makes me feel very sad.
It isn’t a thing of the past. We are still losing brave men and women in conflict. Rememberence is for them as well.
Lest we forget, seems like we may have.

 

[Wooie1958]

Great Uncle Fred died on the 1st day of the Somme 2 weeks after his 16th birthday, he lied about his age so he could join up and is named on Thiepval.

I have 3 other relatives that also gave their lives for King & Country, named on the Menin Gate and Tyne-Cot. Thy were older at 17, 19 and 20.

I will never forget

 

[colinm]

after the silence finished I stormed out of the house and "remonstrated" with the perpetrators (Eastern block "tatters")

Here's something many in the west don't think about, I was talking to a lad from eastern europe (forgotten which country now ), anyhow a comment he made was "for your country WWII lasted 6 years, for us it lasted 50 years".

 

[runnach]

My grandfather on mums side served with the Black Watch during WW1 conflict, he never served in WW2 due to injuries sustained during WW1. Although he did do firewatch during WW2 at Leiths docks.

My dads dad, I never met my dads dad as a child, as he was shot down over France 4th December 1944. My sister and I, we did a search through the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to find his remains are interned within St Sever Military Cemetery, Rouen, France. July 2018 I visited cemetery and placed a poppy Bea had made at his grave, a humbling experience.

At 17 year old, my dad also joined the RAF (my father and grandfather were both RoI citizens) my dad was mustered with many others to Palestine. 77 year on, the conflict there continues.

A couple of pics with my dad sitting alone at Herods Seat, Jerusalem, other pic, dad on right with a colleague outside Air HQ, Jerusalem, a few days before his 19th birthday.

Edit, pics a bit of a mess, don't know why?

 

[zzr1400tim]

View attachment 124800

My grandfather on mums side served with the Black Watch during WW1 conflict, he never served in WW2 due to injuries sustained during WW1. Although he did do firewatch during WW2 at Leiths docks.

My dads dad, I never met my dads dad as a child, as he was shot down over France 4th December 1944. My sister and I, we did a search through the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to find his remains are interned within St Sever Military Cemetery, Rouen, France. July 2018 I visited cemetery and placed a poppy Bea had made at his grave, a humbling experience.

At 17 year old, my dad also joined the RAF (my father and grandfather were both RoI citizens) my dad was mustered with many others to Palestine. 77 year on, the conflict there continues.

A couple of pics with my dad sitting alone at Herods Seat, Jerusalem, other pic, dad on right with a colleague outside Air HQ, Jerusalem, a few days before his 19th birthday.
View attachment 124799
Edit, pics a bit of a mess, don't know why?

just loving all the personal contributions and photos of our people who fought so that we may share our thoughts via the technology today..

 

[trevskoda]

This is one of the few things that makes me feel very sad.
It isn’t a thing of the past. We are still losing brave men and women in conflict. Rememberence is for them as well.
Lest we forget, seems like we may have.

I dont but others around me seem to not bother these days esp the real so called Irish, but when i was at school it was a big thing back 50 odd years ago.

 

[rugbyken]

my mum & dad on their wedding day nov 5th 1942 dad royal. engineers ( like myself) mum land army , i always find a memorial & pay my respects on Armistice day unless it’s sunday then i stay away can’t abide the god botherers

 

[Fisherman]

I parked some distance away from hospital and walked across town, I became aware that nobody was wearing poppies, on the walk there and back later in morning must have seen hundreds of people, I never saw any poppies, as I got seen early I got back before 11am and popped into B&M and at 10:45 they announced they would be hold silence at 11, by 11 I was back in car and sat in remembrance whilst all the shoppers seemed oblivious to the time as they walked past the car.

Colin I have made 3 £5 donations, and never took a poppy.
And whilst out walking today in the countryside we lost track of time.
I looked at my phone and it was 11.17.
But I thought about what our people and people of all nations involved suffered during war.

 

[bartman]

My dad had just turned 3 when his dad died in March 1916 in northern France - some months before the Somme offensive. Unlike so many he does least have a marked grave, which we have visited a few times.
I just wish I had a proper photograph of him, the only one I have I saved from the report of his death in the local paper on the historical newspapers site.