Durham Cathedral to commemorate the centenary of the armistice with programme of remembrance services and events
To mark the centenary of the end of the First World War, Durham Cathedral is rolling out a full programme of remembrance services and events to ensure that the memory of those who gave their life for their country, lives on in the local community.
The Armistice Family Activity Day will be held on 27 October, 10.30am-4pm.
Charlotte Rowbotham, Head of Education at Durham Cathedral, said:
“There will be engaging learning opportunities for all ages, including craft activities, virtual reality headsets to show life in the trenches of WW1 and the opportunity to learn more about the DLI Chapel within the Cathedral.”
The annual Festival of Remembrance concert returns on 10 November, with a muster parade and performances by military and emergency service bands, as well as the largest poppy drop from the Cathedral tower to date, featuring 200,000 poppies, one for each of the estimated 200,000 soldiers from the North East who fell during the Great War.
The concert sets the scene for the special Remembrance Day service, on 11 November at 10.15am, where the Cathedral community will be joined by military representatives and dignitaries to remember both fallen and serving soldiers. Wreaths will be laid around the Cathedral, including in the DLI Chapel, the DLI garden and at the RAF window.
For the entirety of the remembrance period, guests will sit amongst Perspex silhouettes, which form part of the national There But Not There campaign; which seeks to place representative figures in places of worship, community or workplace, to mark the absence left by local servicemen who lost their lives during the Great War. Durham Cathedral was kindly gifted 10 figures by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, which commemorate the nine former Choristers and one Chorister School member of staff who served and did not return.
Visitors to the Cathedral during the remembrance period, will also be able to visit the current Open Treasure exhibition: Armistice: Living with the Peace, which runs until 2 February 2019. The exhibition highlights the impact that the armistice had on the North East community, with a particular focus on their transition to a gradual restoration of peace. The exhibition features an array of fascinating objects, including a selection of the ceramic poppies, which formed part of the Tower of London display; ‘Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red’ in 2014.
Open Treasure tickets are priced from £2.50-£7.50
For further information on any of the remembrance services and events at the Cathedral, including booking information, visit www.durhamcathedral.co.uk or call the visitor’s desk on 0191 3387178.
More information about ‘There But Not There’ can be found at: www.therebutnotthere.org.uk
