The Shellhole Remembrance Day parade will be held in Church Square at 10.30am on Sunday 10 November.
The Shellhole Remembrance Day parade will be held in Church Square at 10.30am on Sunday 10 November.
Formally known as Armistice Day – or Poppy Day because of the paper poppies that are handed out to veterans and others attending the annual memorial – it marks the end of fighting in World War 1 on 11 November, 1918. Armistice Day is still widely observed in Commonwealth countries.
South Africa was forced to withdraw from the Commonwealth in 1961 following the Sharpeville massacre and was readmitted in 1994.
Many South African soldiers are buried in Commonwealth cemeteries.
Although World War I officially ended on 28 June 1919 with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, fighting ceased at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month.
The Kingswood College and St Andrew’s College bands will be on parade, as well as serving members of First City Regiment and the South African Police Service. The Parade includes a wreath-laying ceremony to honour the fallen. The ceremony traditionally includes a rendition of The Last Post by a solo bugler followed by a two-minute silence.
Members of the public are invited to attend what is always a moving tribute to war veterans and those who died in their fight for freedom.
