Prince Harry to lead nation in remembrance on Armistice Day

Prince Harry will lead the nation in remembrance today as he lays a wreath at the National Memorial Arboretum on the 98th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

The Prince will observe the minute's silence, lay a wreath, and give a reading during the service, before inspecting the names on the memorial.

The Armed Forces Memorial, part of the Arboretum in Staffordshire, honours the 16,000 servicemen and women who have died on duty or as a result of terrorism since 1948.

Prince Harry will join fellow ex servicemen at the National Memorial Arboretum for Armistice Day. Credit: PA
The Armed Forces Memorial will be the centre of Armistice Day events on Friday. Credit: PA

Harry, who left the Army last summer after a 10-year career as an officer which saw him deployed twice to Afghanistan, will take the salute from the hundreds of serving personnel and armed forces veterans taking part in the march-past after the service.

On Thursday the Prince joined his grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, at Westminster Abbey's Field of Remembrance to lay small wooden crosses in memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Prince Harry lays a wreath at London's Westminster Abbey on Thursday. Credit: PA

Meanwhile Historic England has announced that 50 war memorials have been given listed status to mark Armistice Day.

The memorials are part of a programme by Historic England using public nominations to ensure 2,500 are listed by the government in time for the centenary of the war's end in 2018.

The monuments of historic and architectural importance include one designed by a grieving sister as a tribute to her slain brother, a series on National Trust land and one nominated by a group of school children.

War memorials are the focal point of Armistice Day services across the country. Credit: PA

Among the memorials listed is the one at Holy Trinity Church in Guildford, Surrey, which was erected in 1922. Designed by the author and children's illustrator, Edith Farmiloe, it commemorates her brother, Major Geoffrey Brooke Parnell, and other soldiers in the Queen's (Royal West Surrey) Regiment who fell with him during the Battle of the Somme in July 1916.

A second is the memorial in Thornton, Bradford, West Yorkshire, which was nominated by pupils in year five at Thornton Primary School.

Also included are eight memorials erected in memory of two brothers killed in the First World War. William Robertson bequeathed money to the National Trust to buy land for memorials dedicated to Laurance and Norman, who were killed in 1916 and 1917 respectively.