And on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month .. it ended

[Clactonian]

One powerful image Mike, impressive and does bring out strong emotions !

Many thanks.

[rpcrowe]

Donald, I learned that one out of three Scottish males of military age, died in The Great War. That is a chilling statistic.

[Donald]

Richard - For a range of social and economic reasons, Scots comprised a disproportionate number of the British Army (there are differing and competing historical perspectives on why exactly this was) and thus the proportion of deaths and injuries was commensurate with this.

[gcowan]

This is a sad topic but...
I visited our National War Memorial recently. I went mainly to see an exhibition called "Remember Me - the Lost Diggers of Vignacourt." This is a wonderful collection of photographs recently found during a clean out of a farm in France. There was a wooden chest full of glass plates which had lain in storage since 1918. The soldiers would have their photo taken and printed on a post card to send home.

The identity of most of these men and women is unknown, but the quality of the photographs is such that as people see them some are recognised and subsequently identified. The truth is not many survived. They are mostly Australian and New Zealand soldiers though there are some from the UK, France, India, Napal, Canada and the USA.
There is one group photo taken in the town square which has been blown up to about 10 feet high, and you can walk up to it and look at the individuals. The band has just played and they are holding their instruments every which way and some are smoking and joking with one another. In the middle is one man looking out at you in the eye directly. This is personal stuff and leaves you drained.
The quality of these photographs and the loving conservation of them by the War Memorial is simply stunning. The link is :
http://www.awm.gov.au/exhibitions/remember-me/

Graham

[Andybazyoung]

I have been in 3 separate conflicts. i have proudly stood next to Americans, Canadians, French, Australians, New Zealanders, People from India, Europe and many of my British colleagues during reunions or Remembrance Day. We have all stood to attention quietly with tears in our eyes remembering those who have fallen beside us and before us. BUT nobody I know, or know of, have whatsoever compared what we have been through to the Great Wars. Some of us have been to those places where atrocities were committed and will never forget that eeriness, silence, guilt and coldness that engulfed us all.
I am honoured to have been a serviceman.
Yet with great sadness, I still find myself standing every November next to younger service men and women who are now experiencing war and its aftermath. I am greatly saddened with this.
Please never let us, nor our friends and families forget where those have served or fallen came from.

[mknittle]

Thanks to all that served!!!