Twenty-one flags, and the people who served beneath them.
Carlisle Cathedral’s entry in our winter campaign celebrates the 21 regimental colours displayed in the Border Regimental Chapel. Also known as standards, colours are sacred ceremonial flags that represent a military unit’s service in battle. Each one is unique, and each honours a courageous group of local people who served their monarch and country in the armed forces.
The oldest colour at Carlisle dates from the Battle of Fontenoy in 1745. The battle is commemorated in the Cathedral each May, when veterans and members of the community gather for a special service of thanksgiving and remembrance.
The colours are documented in an illuminated illustration, The Legends of the Colours, displayed in the Chapel, so visitors can learn the story behind each flag.
Visitors can view the colours and discover more about the Regiment through the memorials and brasses in the Chapel, with the help of the Cathedral’s knowledgeable volunteer guides. They can also attend the monthly Turning of the Leaves ceremony, during which names are read from the books of remembrance in the presence of members of the Regimental Association.
The regimental colours show that cathedral textiles are not only made for the altar. They are flags carried in battle, then laid up in sacred space, where they become a living memorial. Still honoured through services and ceremonies today, they connect fabric to memory, community and gratitude, and they sit well alongside the Lichfield Poppy Project and Bradford’s Khaki Altar Frontal as textiles of remembrance.
See all of wonderful Threads of Faith entries here.
