Photo By Spc. Raymond Quintanilla | Honorable Alice Walpole, the British Consul General and Head of the British Embassy...... read more read more
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BASRA, Iraq – As the clock struck on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month almost a century after the first British Armistice Day in 1918, Britons around the world paid a ‘Silent Tribute’ in honor of their country men and women fallen in combat.
A memorial service traditionally held on the nearest Sunday from Armistice Day, known as Remembrance Sunday, took place at the British Commonwealth-owned cemetery in Basra Nov. 14 with dignitaries and guests from Iraq, Turkey, and the United States alongside the British Consul General.
Honorable Alice Walpole, the British Consul General and Head of the British Embassy Office in Basra, joined Maj. Gen. Abdul Aziz, commanding general of the 14th Iraqi Army Division, Honorable Ali Reza Oozjo, Turkish Consul General in Basra, and Brig. Gen. Ricky Gibbs, United States Division-South deputy commanding general for maneuver to pay tribute to the 3,254 people buried at the Basra War Cemetery.
Just eight kilometers northwest of Basra, Walpole began the service with a reminder of those laid to rest on the sands of Iraq during World War I.
“Like us, they came to Iraq from across the globe,” Walpole said. “Britain, Turkey, India, Pakistan… For them, Basra became their final resting place.”
“We gather here to remember the dead of all world conflicts,” Walpole said. “In this city, we particularly remember all those, Iraqi, British and others, who have given their lives in the service of a safe, stable and prosperous Iraq.”
Soon after Walpole’s greetings, wreaths of poppies were ceremoniously placed on the Stone of Remembrance, etched with the words ‘Their Name Liveth For Evermore.’
The exhortation followed and was recited by Royal Navy Lt. Cmdr. Michael Jones-Thompson, the United States Division-South liaison officer for the United Kingdom.
“They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old,” Jones-Thompson recited. “Age shall not weary them nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them.”
The musical hymn, ‘Flowers of the Forest,’ played by a bagpiper a short distance away, flowed in the air as the clock struck 11 a.m. and the crowd stood in silence for two minutes.
Jon Knight, the Deputy Consul General, said in the U.K. life comes to a standstill in honor of those who have made the greatest sacrifice.
“Across the country at 11 a.m.,” Knight said. “Everyone spends two minutes of rare tranquility remembering all who have suffered as a result of war.”
A ceremony was also conducted Nov. 11, the official Armistice Day, at the Ash Shulamia War Memorial, a monument bearing the names of men and women who died for their country.
Knight said the 100-meter long memorial built in 1921 noted the names of more than 40,500 British and Commonwealth servicemen and women who gave their lives in Iraq in World War I, particularly those for whom there is no known grave.
“This monument provides a physical reminder of the sacrifice people have made over the years,” Knight said. “To respect those who gave their all.”
“Those noted on the monument did a lot to build the infrastructure of Iraq,” Knight said, “particularly in the south around the ports of Basra. It reminds us of all those from so many nations who have died in Iraq over the last 100 years.”
Jones-Thompson said he was honored as the only British serviceman in Basra to represent Her Majesty’s Armed Forces.
“Many wars have been fought in Iraq,” Jones-Thompson said. “It is important that we remember those from all sides who made the ultimate sacrifice so the country can rebuild and prosper in the future.”
This day is not just to recognize those who died in WWI, but for those who have died in the most recent conflicts, Knight said.
“The majority of the British Armed Forces have served alongside their American colleagues in Iraq or Afghanistan,” Knight said. “It's absolutely vital we recognize their efforts. Support those who came back with physical or psychological scars and pay tribute to those who never made it home.”
| Date Taken: | 11.14.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 11.16.2010 06:20 |
| Story ID: | 60208 |
| Location: | BASRA, IQ |
| Web Views: | 190 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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