In the United Kingdom Remembrance Sunday is the second Sunday in November, the Sunday nearest to 11th November, which is the anniversary of the end of the First World War.

What is the First World War?
The First World war, also known as The Great War was a global war which took place primarily in Europe from 1914 to 1918. Over 20 million people died and another 20 million were injured. Remembrance Sunday is a day to remember not only the service men and women who gave their lives in the First World War, but to remember all of the people who have given their lives for the peace and freedom we enjoy today.

What happens on Remembrance Sunday?
In the U.K. the Remembrance Sunday Ceremony is held at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London. Wreaths are laid by the Queen, the Royal Family, the Prime Minister and representatives from the armed forces. A Two Minute Silence is held at 11am across the country before the laying of the wreaths as a tribute to those who lost their lives fighting. The significance of the date and time is that it was on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918 when the guns fell silent and the war was over.

Why do we wear poppies on Remembrance Sunday?
We wear the symbol of the poppy because after the fighting had ended in the First World War, there were wastelands where the battlefields had been. Nothing was left of the green fields which were there before, only mud and barbed wire. The first thing to grow on the wastelands of the battlefields was the poppy. Its colour was so bright against the dark and muddy fields that it became a symbol of hope and beauty surviving against all odds.

Poppies are sold each year by The Royal British Legion to raise money to help war veterans.

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