At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month – we will remember them.

The Armistice, an agreement to end the fighting of the First World War as a prelude to peace negotiations, began at 11am on 11 November 1918.

Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday is a national opportunity to remember the service and sacrifice of all those that have defended our freedoms and protected our way of life. We remember the Armed Forces, and their families, from Britain and the Commonwealth, the vital role played by the emergency services and those who have lost their lives as a result of conflict or terrorism.

The red poppy is a symbol of both Remembrance and hope for a peaceful future. During WW1, much of the fighting took place in Western Europe. The countryside was blasted, bombed and fought over repeatedly. Previously beautiful landscapes turned to mud; bleak and barren scenes where little or nothing could grow. There was a notable and striking exception to the bleakness - the bright red Flanders poppies.

Both World Wars were so terrible, and there was the almost unimagiable loss of lives on all sides, the tragic loss of lives in armed forces and civilians alike, but what have we learnt in the last 80 years I wonder?