Bench made and donated by Ben Coles, in the gardens of The Anchor Inn, Exebridge
The Royal British Legion is recognised as the national custodian of Remembrance.
Remembrance Sunday, the second Sunday in November, is the day traditionally put aside to remember all those who have given their lives for the peace and freedom we enjoy today.
Themes for Remembrance
The main theme of this year’s Festival is One Hundred Years of the Royal British Legion, the poppy, and Remembrance. The Festival will celebrate the Legion red poppy as a beloved national symbol, and shine a light on the important welfare work it enables. It will also include Remembrance as a social good and national value that the charity supports from the national to the local level.
We will also mark the 30th anniversary of Op GRANBY, Britain’s contribution to the 1991 Gulf War; and more recently, to Op PITTING, the RAF airlift following the fall of Kabul this year.
British forces were operational in Afghanistan from 2001 until this August, although the main effort was bracketed by Op HERRICK from 2002-2014. Nonetheless in marking the RAF effort to Op PITTING we will place this in the context of the service and sacrifice of the wider Afghanistan generation, which includes some 180,000 veterans.
We will also pay respects to the fallen who were previously forgotten by Remembrance – primarily drawn from the loyal forces of today’s Commonwealth nations in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. A report this year revealed that they were not always afforded dignity and honour in death, and the least we can do is acknowledge their sacrifices today.
View our news & events calendar for details of local Remembrance events.
