Armistice Day: Nation falls silent to honour war dead

11 November 2021, 11:22 | Updated: 11 November 2021, 12:01

Commemorations were held across the UK
Commemorations were held across the UK. Picture: Alamy

By Daisy Stephens

The nation has fallen silent to honour those who lost their lives in conflict.

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A two-minute silence took place across the country at 11am, marking 102 years since the first two-minute silence was observed on Armistice Day, November 11 1919.

Read more: Remembrance Day: When is the two-minute silence and why is it held?

The Duchess of Cornwall was at the 93rd Field of Remembrance at Westminster Abbey, which has been held in the grounds of the Abbey since November 1928.

Camilla laid a cross as she honoured the servicemen and women who sacrificed their lives for their country.

The Duchess of Cornwall observes a two minute silence at Westminster Abbey
The Duchess of Cornwall observes a two minute silence at Westminster Abbey. Picture: Alamy Live News

Everyone observed two minutes of silence as London traffic rolled past.

Moments before, the Dean of Westminster Dr David Hoyle had said prayers before those gathered and the Last Post sounded.

Two-minute silence for fallen soldiers observed at the Cenotaph in London

In Staffordshire, a service of remembrance took place at the National Memorial Arboretum on top of the Armed Forces Memorial, featuring readings, musical performances and wreath laying.

A single gun fired at 11am from Edinburgh Castle, and Holyrood's Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone led a two-minute silence to mark Armistice Day in the Scottish Parliament alongside opposition leaders and Deputy First Minister John Swinney.

Prior to the silence, Ms Johnstone read a short extract from Laurence Binyon's Ode of Remembrance before The Last Post was played by a bugler.

Nation falls silent to honour war dead

Standing on the steps of parliament's garden lobby, Ms Johnstone then recited the Kohima Epitaph before SNP MSP Stuart Macmillan played the flowers of the forest folk song on the bagpipes.

COP26 President Alok Sharma also marked the two minute silence at the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow, standing alongside Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and others.