The Queen led the country in remembrance of those who died serving their country at the Cenotaph on Sunday. As Big Ben struck 11 o'clock a cannon was fired and Britain fell silent for a solemn two minutes.
More than 10,000 war veterans and military personnel braved the unyielding rain to watch her place a wreath of 90 poppies at the foot of the monument in Whitehall, while ten Royal Marine buglers sounded the Last Post.
It was the first service without the Queen Mother – who died earlier this year – though the Queen was joined by senior members of her family including the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales, the Princess Royal and the Duke of Kent.
Tony Blair then led a procession of wreath-laying by leading public figures including former Prime Ministers Baroness Thatcher and John Major, as well as representatives of the Commonwealth nations and religious leaders.
Thousands of miles away meanwhile, Prince Andrew spoke of his "moving and unexpectedly emotional" return to the Falkland Islands 20 years after serving in the war as a young navy helicopter pilot. He was speaking after a weekend of ceremonies honouring the dead on both sides and during which he laid a wreath at the Argentine cemetery at Darwin.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
