First world war centenary: 'the lamps are going out all over Europe'
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Version 0 of 1. Lights across the UK will be extinguished Monday to mark the centenary of the first world war at the end of a day of commemorations for the millions who fell during four years of warfare in Europe. In Glasgow, the prime minister and the Prince of Wales will attend a Commonwealth service, followed by a procession and march-past. Church services and candlelit vigils are being held throughout the country. In a message to the nation, David Cameron said: "A hundred years ago today, Britain entered the first world war and we are marking that centenary to honour those who served, to remember those who died, and to ensure that the lessons learned live with us for ever. It is right to remember the extraordinary sacrifice of a generation and we are all indebted to them because their most enduring legacy is our liberty." The day will culminate with a "Lights Out" tribute, with people in homes, offices and public buildings urged to take part by turning out all lights between 10pm and 11pm, leaving on just one light or a candle to mark the exact moment the UK entered the first world war. The tribute is evocative of the eve-of-war remarks of the foreign secretary at the time, Edward Grey: "The lamps are going out all over Europe." In London, a solemn service will be held at Westminster Abbey, with lights dimmed one by one until only a single oil lamp is left burning on the tomb of the Unknown Warrior. International remembrance services are being held in Liège in Belgium, and also at the Commonwealth War Grave Commission Saint Symphorien military cemetery near Mons. It is here that both friend and foe lie, the fallen from both sides. Cameron, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will join other dignitaries gathered. There are services, too, at the National Memorial Arboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire, St Anne's Cathedral, Belfast and at Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff. The Queen and Prince Philip will be attending separate services of remembrance, at Crathie Kirk, near Balmoral, and at Sandringham Church, Norfolk. A late-night prom at the Royal Albert Hall will include the premiere of Requiem Fragments by John Tavener, who died last November, after which the audience will hold up tealights. Before Monday's commemorations, the French and German presidents paid emotional tributes on Sunday at a meeting in Alsace, 100 years after Germany declared hostilities against France. The French president, François Hollande, met the German head of state, Joachim Gauck,near the mountain peak at Hartmannswillerkopf where 30,000 soldiers died fighting in the border region. The two observed a minute's silence in front of a monument under which are buried the ashes of 12,000 unknown French and German soldiers. Referring to ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine and Iraq, Hollande said the friendship between the two countries, once bitter enemies, was "an example for the world". "France and Germany, beyond their suffering and bereavements, had the courage to become reconciled – it was the best way to honour the dead and provide a guarantee of peace to the living," he said. The summit at Hartmannswillerkopf offered a commanding view of the Rhine valley and was deemed to be strategically valuable, hence the bitter fighting in the area. Hollande placed a foundation stone for a museum on the site that will open in 2017. |