Symbols of remembrance
Of all the enduring symbols of remembrance, the red poppy is the most well-known. Poppies grew wild on the Western Front. Silk versions produced after the war to raise funds were promoted in Britain by Frenchwoman Anna Guerin. The British Legion ordered nine million in 1921.
Although the intention was to avoid religious imagery, this was not always the case. Tyne Cot cemetery in Flanders was designed to appear as a 'well-ordered English churchyard'. This would have
been comfortingly familiar to many contemporary servicemen. In 1969 the satirical film Oh! What a Lovely War closed with an aerial shot of white crosses - ironical rather than sentimental.
The flowers left thick at nightfall in the wood
This Eastertide call into mind the men
Now far from home."
In Memoriam, Easter 1915 by Edward Thomas
Some local memorials also included symbols relating to victory in war. Harefield's village memorial includes a laurel wreath. The memorial at Uxbridge burial ground is topped by a winged Victory figure.
Lest we forget