11/11/2021
Over the course of World War I, 880,000 British forces died. The toll on the adult male population meant that the 1921 Census recorded 109 women for every hundred men. In WWII, a staggering further 384,000 soldiers were killed in combat and 70,000 civilians killed in bombings.
We teach about these fallen heroes in school so that the sacrifices they made are not forgotten. They lost their lives for us.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
WE SHALL NOT SLEEP,
THOUGH POPPIES GROW
IN FLANDERS FIELDS.
In Flanders Fields by John McCrae
Hard hitting words.
Photograph by - taken at the iconic ‘Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red’ installation at the Tower of London. A great visual to remind us how this week, particularly today, marks a period of reflection and Remembrance.
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