COMMUNITIES across York, North and East Yorkshire will fall silent at Remembrance services on Sunday.

On the 94th anniversary of the end of the First World War, an official remembrance service and parade is due to be held in the Memorial Gardens in Leeman Road, York.

The civic party will be joined by councillors, guests and Sea and Air Cadets, Scouts, Guides and members of St John Ambulance on parade from the Guildhall from 11am.

The service in Memorial Gardens will start with the firing of a minute gun to denote a two-minute silence followed by prayers and wreath laying.

Following the service, the parade will cross Lendal Bridge, turning into Lendal and St Helen’s Square where the Lord Mayor and Lord Crathorne will be on the steps of the Mansion House, along with senior military representatives to take the salute from the parade, which will continue along Coney Street.

Following the city memorial, the Lord Mayor and civic party will be joining 2 Signal Regiment in York Minster for their annual remembrance service.

At 11am today, ex-military personnel and Paul Kirkman, the new director at the National Railway Museum, will lay a wreath at the North Eastern Railway Memorial cenotaph on Station Rise to remember the thousands of men and women railway workers who lost their lives in the First and Second World wars.

On Sunday, a ceremony will be held at the War Memorial in Tadcaster and at Beverley Minster there will be a service followed by a Memorial Service and Laying of Wreaths at the Memorial Gardens, in Hengate.

In Pocklington, there will be a gathering 11am at the First World War Memorial outside the post office followed by the normal Remembrance Day Parade, which will form outside Burnby Hall Gardens at 2pm, ready to march off at 2.15pm.

In Ryedale, there will be an act of remembrance and wreath laying at St Michael’s Parish Church in Malton at 9.30am and a wreath laying ceremony at the War Memorial at 10.55am.

At 10.50am there will be a service of remembrance and wreath laying at St Mary’s Priory in Old Malton.

In Pickering, the Last Post and Reveille will be played at the top of the Market Place at 10.55am and there is a service in the parish church followed by parade to the War Memorial, in Bridge Street, and laying of wreaths at 2pm.

In Thornton-le-Dale there will be a service in All Saints’ Church, followed by laying of wreaths at the Hill Institute at 10.50am and in Kirkbymoorside there will be a civic remembrance service following a Royal British Legion Parade to All Saints’ Church through the town centre at 10.50am.

At 2.30pm in St Mary’s, Farndale there will be a United Service of Remembrance as there will at St Aidan’s, Gillamoor at 6.30pm.

An act of remembrance will be held at St Michael’s, Great Edstone at 11am and in Helmsley there will be a town remembrance service at All Saints’ Church at 10.45am.

A remembrance service and eucharist will be held at Sproxton at 10.55am.

 

Cornflowers honour allied war dead

TO support this year’s Poppy Appeal, Cafe Rouge and Yorkshire Air Museum are offering the French “bluets” alongside the traditional poppies.

Britain fought both world wars on French soil and the loss of life by our allies was immense.

Bluets are cornflowers which are the French symbol of remembrance.

The azure flowers will be available in acknowledgement of all the allied men and women, as well as the thousands of innocent civilians, who were killed during the two world wars.

A total of 2,500 French airmen, with RAF Bomber Command, were stationed at RAF Elvington for 18 months during the Second World War – 51 per cent of their aircrews were killed in action while based at the airfield near York.