Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Zamira Rahim

Remembrance Day: World leaders, royals and the public mark 100th anniversary of the Armistice

Thousands of people across the world gathered in capitals, beside monuments and in front of their leaders to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

Services of remembrance were held in Australia, New Zealand and Commonwealth nations, as tens of thousands of people paused to reflect on the innumerable lives given to a conflict a century ago. 

Some 12,000 people, including veterans and serving soldiers, gathered for a national ceremony of remembrance at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

Commemorations started in the UK at dawn with hundreds of bagpipers across the country playing a lament at 6am.

In Paris, at the biggest of the events marking the occasion, over 100 world leaders and dignitaries walked towards the Arc de Triomphe to stand before the grave of the unknown soldier. 

French president Emmanuel Macron made a speech warning against the dangers of nationalism, in what was interpreted as a veiled criticism of US President Donald Trump, who was among the gathered dignitaries.

Angela Merkel, Vladimir Putin and Justin Trudeau were also present. 

"Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism," Mr Macron said. 

"Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism. In saying 'Our interests first, whatever happens to the others,' you erase the most precious thing a nation can have, that which makes it live, that which causes it to be great and that which is most important: Its moral values."

In the UK Prince Charles laid a wreath at the cenotaph in London on behalf of his mother.

The Queen watched from a nearby balcony, flanked by the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Cornwall. 

In an historic first Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German president, also laid a wreath during the ceremony. 

It is the first time that a German representative has done so. 

Officials said that Mr Steinmeier's presence during the ceremony was a sign of the friendship that now exists between Germany and Britain. 

Following the National Service of Remembrance at the cenotaph, 10,000 people marched past the monument and through London, in tribute to those who served in the First World War. 

At 7pm on Sunday 1,000 beacons across the UK will also be lit to mark the occasion. 

Remembrance ceremonies were also held in Delhi, Kuala Lumpur and on a number of South Pacific Islands.

 If you want to read how Remembrance Day unfolded live, please see what was our live coverage below: 

Welcome to our live coverage of Remembrance Sunday 2018
A number of events are being held across the world this year to mark 100 years since the end of the First World War on 11 November 2018
 

The National Service of Remembrance will be held at 11am at the Cenotaph in London. Read our piece on the day's events here: 

How the end of the First World War is being observed 100 years on

Memorial services, parades and seas of red poppies pay tribute to the soldiers who laid down their lives a century ago

Thousands of people in Australia have marked the centenary of the Armistice.
Crowds gathered for a national service of remembrance at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, where Scott Morrison, the country's prime minister, led a minute's silence at 11 am. 
Around 31,000 Australians served overseas during the First World War, most of whom fought on the Western Front alongside British soldiers and their allies.
Emmanuel Macron has welcomed dozens of world leaders at the French presidential palace. 
Donald Trump, Justin Trudeau, Angela Merkel and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres are among the dignitaries who are in Paris ahead of a ceremony to mark Armistice Day. 
Over 60 leaders will appear at the Arc de Triomphe to commemorate the moment World War One came to an end. 

Every year the Royal British Legion sells red paper poppies to raise money for servicemen and women.

Read our piece explaining why we wear them:

Why do we wear red poppies for Armistice Day?

Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae's poem ‘In Flanders Fields’ provides inspiration

At least 1000 bagpipers across the world will play "Battle's O'er", a traditional lament, to mark Remembrance Day. 
In the UK the music rang out at 6am at locations around the country, including at Bristol Cathedral.

  
Women played a vital role in Britain's war effort, especially at the home front. 
Read about their contribution to World War One here: 

Opinion: How remembrance ignores the vital roles and sacrifices of women during WW1

One million women worked in the munitions factories in 1918. This was dangerous work – hundreds lost their lives and the alternative danger of poisoning resulting in yellow jaundice made these women the subject of mockery
10,000 members of the British public will march past the cenotaph in London to mark Remembrance Sunday. 
The Nation's Thank You procession will start at 12.30 am. 
World leaders in Paris have missed their chance to commemorate the exact moment World War I ended 100 years ago.
 
The war officially ended at 11 am on 11 November 1918.
 
Donald Trump headed toward the Arc de Triomphe as did buses filled with world leaders including Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel and Justin Trudeau, but the group were running late. 

Many of the leaders, holding black umbrellas, stood in a line short of the monument at 11 am.
Over 66 global leaders have gathered in Paris at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe, as bells rang across the city to mark the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day. 
 
Fighter jets passed overhead as the leaders walked to the monument. 
 
US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived separately for the commemorations, due to security arrangements.
A topless female protester has been detained after she ran towards the motorcade which was carrying Donald and Melania Trump along the Champs Elysees in Paris. 
 
She came within a few meters of the motorcade but was apprehended by French police.
 
The protester appears to be a member of Femen, a feminist activist group based in the French capital.
The US leader was on his way to the Arc de Triomphe to mark Armistice Day. 

In the US the tomb of a nameless soldier attracts millions of visitors each year:

Prince Charles will lead tributes to all those who have lost their lives in conflict at the cenotaph today. 
 
He will lay a wreath at the monument on behalf of his mother for the second year in a row, while an equerry will lay a wreath on behalf of the Duke of Edinburgh.
 
The Queen will watch the Whitehall service from the balcony of the nearby Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Commonwealth nations have marked the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War: 
The UK is about to observe a two-minute silence to mark Remembrance Day.
Prince Charles has laid a wreath at the cenotaph to mark Remembrance Day, as the Queen watched from a nearby balcony.
 
She was flanked by the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duchess of Cambridge.
 
Theresa May, the UK prime minister and Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the opposition, also laid wreaths at the monument. 
 

In an historic move German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier has laid a wreath at the cenotaph on behalf of his nation. 

It is the first time a German leader has done so. 

Many principles and challenges of PTSD treatment were first identified during the First World War.
 
Read our piece about the psychological trauma caused by the conflict here: 

'What the First World War taught us about treating PTSD

If we are to learn lessons from the First World War and better acknowledge the sacrifices of those who served, we must also acknowledge the impact of trauma

Emmanuel Macron has warned of the fragility of peace and the dangers of nationalism in a speech marking the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.
 
He was speaking in Paris, to over 60 heads of state and government who had gathered to mark the occasion, including US president Donald Trump. 
 
"The traces of this war never went away," Macron said. 

"The old demons are rising again."
 
"We must reaffirm before our peoples our true and huge responsibility." 
Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.