Lest we forget

[Thumper]

It seems sadly ironic that yesterday morning I spent a couple of hours walking around the cemetery at Tyne Cot, just outside the village of Passendale in Flanders. At 08:45 this morning, the sole survivor of the Battle of Passchendaele, Harry Patch, passed away aged 111.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8168691.stm

I will write a little more about this later, but I will leave you with these images, which I took in the cemetery yesterday.

[Jonzjob]

Last time I walked around one of the cemitaries up there I left it with tears in my eyes!

[Dotty]

Very heart felt photos Thumper.... Yes a sad day for British history today with the passing of Harry Patch

[Thumper]

The funeral takes place today in Brighton of Henry Allingham, aged 113, who died 12 days ago. He and Harry Patch were the last two surviving soldiers who saw action in the trenches. Henry was in the Navy and the RAF and is being buried with full military honours. The service will be attended by many top representatives of the armed services and is to be followed by a flypast by five replica WW1 aircraft.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8175751.stm

The funeral service for Harry Patch will take place in Wells Cathedral next Thursday ahead of a private family service for his burial in a nearby village church.

There are now plans for a national memorial service to be held in Westminster Abbey later in the year, possibly October. The service will honour not only Henry Allingham and Harry Patch, but also all those others who fought, and died, in the Great War - the war that was supposed to end all wars, but didn't.