REMEMBRANCE DAY

‘WE WILL REMEMBER THEM’

REMEMBRANCE DAY IN HEXHAM

Every year the Council is proud to organize the Remembrance Day Parade and Service of Remembrance in Hexham when we Honour those who gave their lives in War so that we all might live in Peace.

More than eleven years ago the Hexham Branch of the Royal British Legion was forced to disband due to the advancing ages of its members and their reducing number. They asked the Council to help and by a resolution of the Council it agreed it would be proud and privileged to organize Hexham’s Annual Remembrance Day Parade and Service of Remembrance.

The programmes [click here] show how each year the Council has tried to Remember the Fallen.

The Council remembers everyone’s obligation not to forget the many men and women of Hexham and elsewhere who died in the First World War, in the Second World War and in all the many Wars and Conflicts that have occurred since. They all died in our Service and it is a small thing to hold an Annual Remembrance Day Ceremony so they can be properly remembered and thanked for their service, their sacrifice and their bravery.

As previous years' programmes show, we try to thank each year a veteran from each branch of the Armed Services. Take a while and read the individual pages for each of the veterans, you will soon see how brave they were, how unselfish they were and how we all owe them our thanks.

Sometimes people say why should do we do this, is it not glorifying war? The answer must be this – to remember a loved one who has died is surely the least you can do to show your love. So once a year Hexham remembers everyone who has died for us all, which is surely the least Hexham can do. War itself does not come into our thanks or remembrance.

Remembrance Sunday is 14 November in 2010. Organisation of the event is ongoing and we are always happy to have any comments or suggestions you wish to make that you think would improve our ceremony. The Remembrance Day Working Group of the Council will be happy to consider every suggestion made. [email us] If you know any veteran who might be approached to take part in this event, please contact us as soon as possible. Many veterans we have approached previously do not think they are eligible or that they did not ‘do anything worth remembering’. Believe us when we say that is not true. Anyone who served their country in any way is entitled to our thank you. Look at some of the veterans details in the programmes; they were all special in one way or another. But each year there are fewer veterans left among us, so let us try to thank them while they are here and can know how much we appreciate their service. The programme for this year is available to download [here]. We hope you will use your copy when you come to the Parade and Service at the War Memorial, Beaumont Street, Hexham from 10.15 am next Remembrance Sunday. ‘WE WILL REMEMBER THEM’

WAR GRAVES CEREMONY

	On the Saturday before Remembrance Sunday there is a short ceremony of Remembrance at Hexham Cemetery where there are 39 War Graves. Councillors and local Army and Air Force Cadets lay poppy crosses on each one of these War Graves. At each one the name, date of death and any inscription are read out and then the Poppy cross is placed at the head of the Grave. It is an informal ceremony; there is no religious content, it is just to show we do ‘Remember Them’.

Most of the War Graves are of service personnel who died from the First and Second World Wars, sometimes just after the end of the Second World War when they were in the Hexham area, usually because they had been wounded and died in local hospitals. Others died in battle, some are buried abroad but all are remembered every year with this Ceremony. There are servicemen from Poland and Canada as well as Great Britain. There used to be the graves of Germans POW’s as well but they were repatriated home in the early fifties.
The Ceremony begins at 10.30 AM and you are most welcome to come along if you wish to join us.
After this ceremony the Mayor goes to lay a Poppy Wreath at the War Memorial that is within the Hexham Hospital Chapel. This Memorial is made of inscribed wooden plaques listing the war dead from this area. The plaques were originally sited in the Chapel of the War Memorial Hospital, off Eastgate, Hexham. This war memorial hospital was originally a private house but after the end of the First World War the building was purchased by public subscription and a hospital installed. The Health Authority eventually had to take the decision to sell the land and building for housing as the hospital had become too difficult to adapt or modernize. But the War Memorial plaques were removed and carefully stored and when the new Hexham hospital was completed in 2007 they were re-installed and are now on permanent view adjoining the Hospital Chapel.

To see a list of all the War Graves in the Cemetery [click here].

January 2010