The Cenotaph in London, Britain’s national memorial to the dead of the Great War designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. It was unveiled by King George V on Armistice Day 1920 (Photo: Centenary News)

UK ticket ballot launches for Centenary Armistice Day ‘People’s Procession’

Britain is inviting the public to enter a ticket ballot to march past the Cenotaph on November 11- and to take part in bell ringing – on a day of international commemorations marking the 100th anniversary of the Great War Armistice.

Tickets for 10,000 people, allocated in pairs, will be made available through a ballot opening today (July 12) for A Nation’s Thank you – The People’s Procession, the Government has announced.

The ticket ballot is now CLOSED (August 12).

The event will follow the traditional Remembrance Sunday service of remembrance in Whitehall, which this year coincides with the centenary of the ceasefire that ended the First World War.

Bells

As part of the day’s commemorations, Britain and Germany are joining in a call for bells of all kinds to be rung globally (at 12.30hrs GMT/13.30hrs CET/12.30 local time) to replicate the outpouring of relief when the guns fell silent. The US Centennial Commission has already made a similar appeal to Americans.

Britain’s church bells, which had largely been silenced during the Great War, started ringing out in celebration as news of the Armistice spread.

“On the centenary of the Armistice, it is right that we come together to give thanks to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and those who returned home to help shape the world we live in today,” UK Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright says.

“The 11th of November offers us a unique opportunity to show our appreciation for the generation who gave so much to secure this hard fought victory.

Ringing Remembers
A UK Government-funded project is seeking new bell ringers for Armistice Day. See Ringing Remembers for details. So far 1,000 people have been recruited. The target is 1,400, honouring the number of British bell ringers killed in the Great War. Participants will receive the ‘Ringing Remembers’ badge as a last reminder of their contribution to the Armistice Centenary.

See also in Centenary News:

US tolls Bells of Peace on Armistice Centennial.

Countdown to July-November anniversaries leading up to the Armistice.

Source: UK Government

Images: Centenary News

Posted by: CN Editorial Team