Duchess of Edinburgh to attend Anzac Day commemorations in the capital
Stephen Smith, Australia's High Commissioner, and Chris Seed, acting High Commissioner for New Zealand, will attend the service at the Australian War Memorial at Hyde Park Corner along with fellow countrymen and women, with the Duchess of Edinburgh also due to pay her respects.
Wreaths will be laid at Antipodean memorials and prayers said during the service.
The Princess Royal is in Turkey to mark the anniversary of the landings on the beaches of Gallipoli (Yui Mok/PA)
Anzac Day has been commemorated in the capital since the first anniversary of the First World War Anzac – Australian and New Zealand Army Corps – landings at Gallipoli, Turkey, in 1916, when King George V attended a service at Westminster Abbey.
Since then, the services have become an important moment for thousands of New Zealanders and Australians, who honour the sacrifices of their countrymen and women in all wars.
Anzac Day will also be marked by a wreath-laying ceremony at the Cenotaph due to be attended by the Duchess of Edinburgh, who will later join the congregation at Westminster Abbey for a service of commemoration and thanksgiving.
The Princess Royal is in Turkey to mark, on behalf of the King, the 110th anniversary of the landing of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps on the beaches of Gallipoli.
On Thursday Anne delivered a message from Charles during a service at Turkey's Canakkale Martyrs' Memorial, with the King extending his 'special thoughts and prayers', and describing how 'we may take some solace in the warm friendships and deep alliances that have emerged from the desperation of Gallipoli'.
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The Guardian
20 hours ago
- The Guardian
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Leader Live
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- Leader Live
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North Wales Chronicle
2 days ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Lone piper plays at Edinburgh Castle to mark 80th anniversary of VJ Day
Senior Pipe Major Peter Grant was one of six armed forces bagpipers playing simultaneously at locations in the UK and east Asia on Friday. The pipers all played the traditional tune When The Battle's O'er, and a wreath was laid at the Japanese Garden of Peace in Hammersmith, London. Two other UK pipers played at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire and the Cenotaph in London. Meanwhile, the three pipers in east Asia played at the British Army camp in Kathmandu, Nepal, the Royal Gurkha Rifles Memorial in Brunei, and on board aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales, which is currently at sea in the Far East. Other events to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day are also taking place on Friday. A national two-minute silence will be held at noon and the Red Arrows will join historic Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft for a flypast over the commemorations at the National Memorial Arboretum. A number of public buildings around the UK are also set to be lit up on Friday evening. Sites in Scotland will include Stirling Castle, Scone Palace, Ness Bridge, the Kelpies, Glasgow Bridge, Hamilton Town House and Edinburgh City Chambers. By 1945, some 365,000 British and 1.5 million Commonwealth troops had been deployed across Asia and the Pacific. More than 90,000 British troops were casualties in the war against Japan, and nearly 30,000 died, while more than 12,000 Britons were among the 190,000 Commonwealth troops held as prisoners of war by the Japanese. Of the Allied forces, the US suffered the greatest losses, with more than 100,000 killed in action. In an audio message released at 7.30am on Friday, the King paid tribute to the 'courage and camaraderie' of those who fought in the Pacific and Far East in what he said was 'humanity's darkest hour'. He also acknowledged the hardships suffered by 'innocent civilian populations of occupied territories'. 'Their experience reminds us that war's true cost extends beyond battlefields, touching every aspect of life – a tragedy all too vividly demonstrated by conflicts around the world today,' he said. 'On this landmark anniversary, we should also pause to acknowledge that in the war's final act, an immense price was paid by the citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki – a price we pray no nation need ever pay again.' He added: 'But in recalling so much suffering, we must not lose sight of how great was the cause and how sweet the victory.'
