Today, the EDP launches a campaign to honour all those who fought and fell in the First World War.
It was The Great War, the war to end all wars in which millions of people died on the battlefields of Europe and further afield. The lives of many more were irreversibly affected and not a single community in Norfolk was left untouched by the conflict which changed the social landscape of the country forever.
Now, to mark 100 years since the end of the First World War and to honour those who made the ultimate sacrifice this newspaper, along with Norwich Cathedral, King's Lynn Minster, Great Yarmouth Minster and The Royal British Legion (RBL) has teamed up to launch the Fields of Remembrance campaign.
With each location setting aside a space to create a field of remembrance, our aim is to create a poignant Norfolk-wide memorial to those who fought and fell in the war.
There are three elements to the campaign:
- We are calling on people to pay their respects by purchasing and placing a wooden-backed poppy at one the three locations hosting a field.
- Alternatively perhaps your village or town could set aside an area and host your own Field of Remembrance as a visual symbol across the county.
- And thirdly, from today we pledge to give coverage and support to any individual, group or organisation doing something to honour those who sacrificed so much so our freedom could remain.
David Powles, editor of The Eastern Daily Press, said: 'We are launching the campaign to honour those who fought during the First World War 100 years ago.
'We're asking people to buy a wooden-backed poppy and to take them along to the cathedral and either write a message or the name of someone who fell and fought during the First World War on the back of them, we've also teamed up with Lynn and Yarmouth Minsters who will be setting aside areas to do the same.
'But we're also asking communities towns and villages to do the same, perhaps you could give up an area to pay tribute in the same way or maybe you're already doing something and if your community group village is already doing something to honour those who fell or fought during the war then we'd like to hear about it.
'It's so important that we pay tribute and honour those who fought for the freedom that we all enjoy today and this is our pledge to those who gave their lives and sacrificed so much so that we could have freedom.'
The Very Revd Jane Hedges, Dean of Norwich, which is dedicating a space in the Cloister Garth to a field of remembrance, said: 'Four years ago, as I arrived in Norwich, we were commemorating the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War.
'Now we reach another incredibly important moment in our history.
'In Norfolk alone, more than 15,000 soldiers' lives were lost in that terrible conflict which was supposed to be the war to end all wars.'
Adding how the cathedral was hosting a number of special events in the run up to Armistice Day she said: 'We will remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice and we will give thanks for their courage and fortitude.'
The Revd Simon Ward, of Great Yarmouth Minster, said: 'We see the church as the centre of the community, it's there for everyone and the whole community.
'I think we need the past to remind and inform us and we would be foolish if we forgot to follow that. It's one hundred years since the war to end all wars.
'It's absolutely vital to remember those who gave their lives and those whose lives were never the same because of what they had been through.'
The Revd Canon Christopher Ivory of King's Lynn Minster said: 'I want to support the idea of the field of remembrance because I think it is very important to remember the huge cost of war in terms of human lives and suffering.'
Details of Remembrance events taking place across the region will be published in the newspaper and online in the days leading up to Armistice Day.
To let us know about an event your community is holding email sabrina.johnson@archant.co.uk
Where to buy a poppy
Wooden-backed poppies will be available to purchase from all the locations hosting a field of remembrance.
In Norwich, crosses will be on sale in the Cathedral gift shop and at the donations desk, The Royal British Legion shop in Castle Mall from Saturday, October 27 and from the Eastern Daily Press and Evening News Offices in Prospect House in Rouen Road.
In Great Yarmouth, crosses will be available for the Minster coffee shop between 10am-3pm and from the Great Yarmouth Mercury Office in King Street.
In King's Lynn, crosses will be available from an honesty box in the Minster and from Violets florists in Blackfriars Street.
The recommended donation per cross is £1.50.
Crosses can be placed at the fields of remembrance from Sunday, October 28.
On October 28 at Norwich Cathedral there will be a short ceremony at midday to open the Cathedral's field.
Key Events not to miss
From now until November 11, there are events marking the centenary of the end of the First World War taking place across the county, here is just a selection.
From October 20, Norwich Castle will host the exhibition Armistice: Legacy of the Great War in Norfolk, a major exhibition commemorating the end of the war and its physical impact on the county.
On Friday, October 26, The Royal British Legion will be open its remembrance shop in Castle Mall. The opening will feature historical re-enactors dressed as First World War soldiers and a display of poppies made by school children from across Norfolk.
On Friday, November 9 at 6.30pm, Lord Dannatt, the former head of the British Army will give a talk on The Law, Morality and Armed Conflict.
On Saturday, November 10, at 7.30pm in Norwich Cathedral nave there will be a remembrance concert featuring the music of Brahms, Parry and Purcell/Sandstrom's.
Tickets for the cathedral events are available from cathedral.org.uk
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