Poppy Day - Remembrance Day - is the day when the dead of two World Wars and other armed conflicts are remembered in the UK. The Armistice at the end of the First World War of 1914 - 1918 was signed on November 11th at precisely 11 am - the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For this reason, Remembrance Day is on the 11th of November each year although church services and many parades are held on the Sunday nearest that date - in 2010 this will be on 14th November.
A national ceremony takes place at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London. The Queen lays the first wreath at the Cenotaph.
Remembrance Day is also known as Poppy Day, because it is traditional to wear an artificial poppy. They are sold by the Royal British Legion, a charity dedicated to helping war veterans.
A poem called 'For the Fallen' is often read aloud during the ceremony; the most famous stanza of which reads:
You can read the whole poem here
Or you can listen to it
17 year old Crawford McInally-Kier is (or was, as this video is dated last year) a pupil at Hutchesons' Grammar School in Glasgow. His great-great-grandfather served with the Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders, and died during the First World War, leaving behind a wife and six month old daughter.
Crawford admits that Remembrance Day was a difficult and rather distant concept for him until he visited the war cemeteries and memorials in Flanders. In this video, Crawford tells how his visit changed the way he views Remembrance Day.
Why should young people mark Remembrance Day? - November 2009 from War Graves Commission on Vimeo.
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