:00:21. > :00:49.are commemorating the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War.
:00:50. > :00:53.just joined us, you're warmly welcome. We are talking about what
:00:54. > :00:58.happened a century ago, because in an hour's time, the people of the
:00:59. > :01:02.United Kingdom will come together to reflect on the immense sacrifice of
:01:03. > :01:06.the generation of the First World War, the Great War, as it's still
:01:07. > :01:12.known in many parts. Candles will be lit in homes all over the country.
:01:13. > :01:16.In Burnley, for example, people will be gathering around the war memorial
:01:17. > :01:20.there and from the Houses of Parliament here at Westminster, to
:01:21. > :01:24.the great iconic structure of Blackpool tower, the lights will go
:01:25. > :01:30.out in a powerful, symbolic act. Here at Westminster Abbey, special
:01:31. > :01:34.candle-lit service attended by the Duchess of Cornwall. We're looking
:01:35. > :01:38.forward to it, watching events in the abbey is my colleague, Eddie
:01:39. > :01:44.Butler. It will be a solemn commemoration,
:01:45. > :01:49.it's in the content, the poems, letters, prayers, the extracts from
:01:50. > :01:54.books. There will be anticipation, but more sorrow, frustration and
:01:55. > :02:01.bitterness. There will be hauntingly sad music, a deepening darkness and
:02:02. > :02:06.silence. The sense of trepidation will be enhanced by movement towards
:02:07. > :02:11.one place in the Abbey, the grave of tonight's central character, who had
:02:12. > :02:16.not yet fought, had not yet died, but here he is, an unidentified
:02:17. > :02:21.British soldier, honoured among kings, the symbol of sacrifice to
:02:22. > :02:28.come. There's also the theme of vigil, of being awake in the night,
:02:29. > :02:32.a time for calm and reflection, but also of determination. Whatever the
:02:33. > :02:39.arguments have been for or against the war, now there was this
:02:40. > :02:43.determination to stand together, not to flea from what -- flee from what
:02:44. > :02:47.darkness might bring. But darkness there would be and darkness there
:02:48. > :02:52.will be tonight, a reference to the words of Sir Edward Grey, the then
:02:53. > :02:58.Foreign Secretary, who says, "The lamps are going out all over Europe.
:02:59. > :03:04.We shall not see them lit again in our lifetime." On that note, there
:03:05. > :03:11.is a twist in the tale. But first, now in the north trancept, Sian.
:03:12. > :03:14.As people start taking their seats here and the congregation prepare to
:03:15. > :03:22.pick up their candles for the service, I'm joined here by James,
:03:23. > :03:27.who has been an Abbey volunteer and was also here and sang in the
:03:28. > :03:33.coronation and the actor and writer Mark Gaitiss as well. Mark, what are
:03:34. > :03:35.you doing? I'm reading a poem called The Messages, as part of the
:03:36. > :03:41.ceremony tonight. What's the significance this afternoon poem for
:03:42. > :03:46.you? It's the first recorded poem about shell shock. Gibson actually
:03:47. > :03:50.didn't serve abroad for quite a long time because he tried four times,
:03:51. > :03:56.but I think his eye sight was too bad. It's a very moving, sad poem.
:03:57. > :04:03.I'm here really to represent my grandfather, who was at the Somme
:04:04. > :04:07.and happily survived. I just want to acknowledge the amazing sacrifice
:04:08. > :04:11.that they all made for us. And the war has been so much debated of
:04:12. > :04:15.late, about its actual merits and we grew up with the idea that it was a
:04:16. > :04:20.complete waste of time. Whatever side you come down on, it's very
:04:21. > :04:24.important to acknowledge the sacrifice everyone made. James, you
:04:25. > :04:33.have a personal connection as well, don't you? My grandfather was killed
:04:34. > :04:43.at Passchendaele in This is 1917. Him, Edward. Yes. He's got a
:04:44. > :04:52.memorial, but he has no known grave. We do have a letter from him, the
:04:53. > :04:57.last letter he wrote. Oh, yes. He's talking about not getting any
:04:58. > :05:01.letters. Yes. "I wrote to dad on 24th of September and have not had a
:05:02. > :05:06.reply to it. I've written at least two since. It's rotten to be treated
:05:07. > :05:12.like this, especially when one gets nervy." The little mouse, he talks
:05:13. > :05:17.about a mouse running around his feet, while he's writing as well. It
:05:18. > :05:20.seems so human, doesn't it? When you think of the horror of what he was
:05:21. > :05:26.facing to be writing things like this. "We have a fairly dry dugout,
:05:27. > :05:30.but HQ took a fancy to it. I have to go. Still, this will do for tonight.
:05:31. > :05:34.After that, we'll be luck dwroi get a nice, dry shell house. The mouse
:05:35. > :05:41.has just bolted. He was a fat little chap." That, to me, is just, it hits
:05:42. > :05:46.me absolutely to think that in all that carnage, you can worry about a
:05:47. > :05:49.dear little mouse. Yes, and he died fairly soon after writing Four days
:05:50. > :05:56.that. After that. He was killed and they never found his body. Well, the
:05:57. > :05:59.mud was so horrendous any way. It's just the thought that people could
:06:00. > :06:03.go through that, in those days, it's unbelievable. What does it mean,
:06:04. > :06:07.then for you to be here? You know the Abbey so well, but to be here
:06:08. > :06:10.and thinking about him and all the others who lost their lives?
:06:11. > :06:14.Absolutely, this is the whole thing about this whole atmosphere here.
:06:15. > :06:22.It's a church. It's not just a memorial place. It is a living,
:06:23. > :06:27.breathing memorial. Tonight, as the candles go out, I think that will
:06:28. > :06:35.probably finish me. James, thank you. And you too. That is going to
:06:36. > :06:40.be the key moment, of course, the Grave of the Unknown Warrior...
:06:41. > :06:43.Those of you wondering where Her Majesty the Queen has been today,
:06:44. > :06:47.because we've seen the Prince of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of
:06:48. > :06:51.Cambridge, Prince Harry, well the Queen is spending her traditional
:06:52. > :06:55.summer break at Balmoral. She was attending a private commemoration
:06:56. > :07:01.today for the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War,
:07:02. > :07:05.private service, this is at Crathie Kirk, the local church for mall
:07:06. > :07:08.moral. Her Majesty was attending a private service there today in
:07:09. > :07:13.contrast to the big, public, official events that we've seen. So,
:07:14. > :07:19.that's where the Queen was earlier. Here we are at Westminster Abbey.
:07:20. > :07:23.Shirley Williams still with me. David Olusoga too, the historian and
:07:24. > :07:26.broadcaster and historian, Margaret MacMillan as well. Thank you for
:07:27. > :07:30.staying with us. We are looking forward to the service. You were
:07:31. > :07:35.discussing your mother, Vera, earlier, I was reading a couple of
:07:36. > :07:41.the notes again about the history that she'd lost a fiance, which we
:07:42. > :07:46.mentioned earlier, Ay brother. Her -- a brother. Her only brother.
:07:47. > :07:52.Close friends too. The question I want to ask and viewers may want me
:07:53. > :07:56.to ask, how she dealt with that, we know about her writing, how she
:07:57. > :08:00.dealt with that overwhelming grove throughout her life? How did it
:08:01. > :08:06.manifest itself? Primarily she felt that she was dedicated to recreating
:08:07. > :08:11.the characters of the men she'd lost. That was one of the things
:08:12. > :08:15.that drove her into writing. She wanted people to know what Roland,
:08:16. > :08:19.Edward, Victor and Geoffrey were like. That made her feel that she
:08:20. > :08:23.could give them a life back. They would become, in a limited sense,
:08:24. > :08:28.immortal, if you know what I mean. That drove her and gave her the real
:08:29. > :08:32.determination to finish the book, which she found hard to do. On the
:08:33. > :08:38.other hand, there was something in her whole character that was always
:08:39. > :08:43.buried in the fields of Flanders, something that never quite changed.
:08:44. > :08:51.She never, I don't ever remember her laughing without any restraint. I
:08:52. > :08:56.don't remember her having a sense of just unmitigated joy. She had a
:08:57. > :09:00.sense of humour. She had a sense of pleasure, but you had the feeling it
:09:01. > :09:03.was always balanced against this vast weight of what history had
:09:04. > :09:08.given to her. That's what really drove her to become a great peace
:09:09. > :09:13.maker in the world, the other side of the part that was saved by the
:09:14. > :09:17.pursuit of the immortal and men she'd known. In all your research,
:09:18. > :09:20.David, what was your experience of people dealing with grief, those who
:09:21. > :09:24.survived, the families who lost people - what's your experience,
:09:25. > :09:31.what did you come across in terms of the way that people sometimes
:09:32. > :09:35.internalised what they hurt, the grief? I think there's a sea change
:09:36. > :09:38.when the war comes to an end, where people feel the crisis has passed
:09:39. > :09:44.and they can allow themselves to embrace their grief. What you see
:09:45. > :09:49.over and over again is families facing the reality of the wounded,
:09:50. > :09:53.of people whose minds are broken by the war and needing to put them
:09:54. > :09:56.first. There's nothing that can be done for the dead other than
:09:57. > :10:00.remembering them, as your mother did. But there was such a colossal
:10:01. > :10:04.weight of men with broken bodies and damaged minds. They were the
:10:05. > :10:09.preoccupation of many nations. How powerful a theme was that post-war
:10:10. > :10:12.and the way that people tried to cope with injuries, psychological
:10:13. > :10:16.injuries, that they'd not really had to talk about or dealt with before
:10:17. > :10:19.that? The trouble was we still didn't know enough about them. I'm
:10:20. > :10:23.not sure we treated them in the best way. We were learning. It was a slow
:10:24. > :10:27.process. What the great losses of the war did was feed into a longing,
:10:28. > :10:31.certainly in Britain and other countries for peace. I think that's
:10:32. > :10:36.an important theme in the 1930s. People wanted to do almost anything
:10:37. > :10:41.to avoid another war. Well, we've said it before, but of course, the
:10:42. > :10:46.Great War is now beyond living memory. I think we mentioned Harry
:10:47. > :10:51.Patch in the ceremony there in Belgium a short while ago, who died,
:10:52. > :10:56.I think, six years ago. But the people who fought it have not been
:10:57. > :10:59.forgotten, clearly. Tonight communities throughout the United
:11:00. > :11:02.Kingdom are determined to recognise them in commemorations of their own
:11:03. > :11:06.and since late July, people of Burnley have been laying crosses to
:11:07. > :11:09.commemorate more than 4,000 men and women from the town it and
:11:10. > :11:12.surrounding area who gave their lives in the war, many of the
:11:13. > :11:42.crosses have been laid by local school children.
:11:43. > :11:45.The children that were here today are from Holy Trinity Church
:11:46. > :11:48.They have a church associated with their school called St Matthew's
:11:49. > :11:52.They were given those particular names to research
:11:53. > :11:57.Burnley at that time in 1914 was a network of terraced streets.
:11:58. > :12:07.And within that community were churches with shops with schools.
:12:08. > :12:15.The losses from those communities were felt even more because whole
:12:16. > :12:20.streets of people went off to serve, streets of people who died.
:12:21. > :12:23.The person on my cross was Leonard Mosely.
:12:24. > :12:27.Leonard Mosely died because of a submarine.
:12:28. > :12:34.He was on a ship called the Royal Edwards and he drowned.
:12:35. > :12:36.I liked learning about the world war because I liked
:12:37. > :12:41.learning about all the soldiers and listening to all the stories.
:12:42. > :12:44.The people that I put down were Maurice Renwick and
:12:45. > :12:52.I know about Alfred Victor Smith that he won the Victoria Cross medal
:12:53. > :12:55.for jumping on a grenade to save the people around him.
:12:56. > :13:00.I felt sad but a different feeling that I can't describe
:13:01. > :13:08.because it was sad but he jumped on a grenade to save everyone else.
:13:09. > :13:11.The last Burnley crosses will be laid at the cenotaph later
:13:12. > :13:16.They will include the name of Private Harry Manders,
:13:17. > :13:18.whose relatives Margaret, Ginette and Robie-Lea will be
:13:19. > :13:23.We'll all be going up to Towneley Park at 11 o'clock at night
:13:24. > :13:27.But Robie-Lea will be laying a cross for Harry Manders.
:13:28. > :13:32.He's the youngest man to be killed in the war in Burnley.
:13:33. > :13:36.He was in the war in 1916 and he was killed when he went out of the
:13:37. > :13:43.He was about to get back in but he was shot in the back.
:13:44. > :13:53.And he went in with three other 16 year olds.
:13:54. > :13:56.He was killed, another was injured and the other had to go back
:13:57. > :14:01.The soldiers were just like normal people and they gave their lives so
:14:02. > :14:16.that we could have a better future and not be in a war, like they were.
:14:17. > :14:20.children in Burnley, who have been playing their nart preparing for
:14:21. > :14:24.today. Let's have a little more. I mentioned the fact there are events
:14:25. > :14:31.everywhere. We want to catch up with Burnley tonight and join Tony
:14:32. > :14:38.Livesey who's there. Thank you very much. We're here in
:14:39. > :14:42.Burnley. We have seen Robie-Lea, she's with me now. What's it like to
:14:43. > :14:46.be able to lay that cross tonight? I feel honoured to be able to lay a
:14:47. > :14:51.cross down for somebody who died in Word War I and fought.
:14:52. > :14:56.Your great-great-uncle did a marvellous thing. Lots of school
:14:57. > :15:00.children will lay crosses tonight. Some people slightly older, in their
:15:01. > :15:10.years, Katherine is here. Who are you remembering? My grandfather,
:15:11. > :15:17.James and his brother, Thomas, who, Thomas was killed at Gallipoli. They
:15:18. > :15:23.never found his body. My grandfather was killed... He gave his life in
:15:24. > :15:27.the First World War. Here he is. There's a poignant story to James,
:15:28. > :15:34.what happened? He got compassionate leave to go and see his baby son.
:15:35. > :15:38.Unfortunately, he was killed before he saw him. He never saw Here is
:15:39. > :15:43.him. A picture of his son. Also called, in honour of James. James,
:15:44. > :15:47.yes. He was called James as well. He never saw him. You will lay two
:15:48. > :15:51.crosses tonight. Ken, you have three crosses in your hand. What's your
:15:52. > :15:54.story? My story is that my grandfather went to war with three
:15:55. > :15:57.of his brothers and only my grandfather returned. The three
:15:58. > :16:02.brothers were killed in different theatres of the war. There was
:16:03. > :16:11.Thomas, who's buried in Malta. He was killed in Gallipoli. There was
:16:12. > :16:16.Fred, who was honoured in Basra. He was killed in Egypt. There was John,
:16:17. > :16:21.who was killed on the Somme and he's buried in France. How does it feel
:16:22. > :16:26.for both of you to be here today honouring these men? I'm pleased
:16:27. > :16:30.that I am here to do this. I wish my mother was here to see it, because
:16:31. > :16:38.she would be thrilled. She gave my son the medals. He's now over in
:16:39. > :16:42.Belgium celebrating, well, not celebrating, commemorating. There is
:16:43. > :16:46.your mother in the picture What does there. Mean to you? It means a lot.
:16:47. > :16:50.I want to remember it for my grandchildren and pass it on to
:16:51. > :16:55.them, so that they don't forget. OK, there we are. The procession is due
:16:56. > :17:01.to take place. The last 300 crosses will be lain down, followed by a
:17:02. > :17:04.two-minutes silence and the lights will go out.
:17:05. > :17:07.Tony, thank you very much. Many thanks to your guests for sharing
:17:08. > :17:12.their experiences and bringing their photographs too. It was nice to hear
:17:13. > :17:16.from them. Not just densely populated towns and cities that
:17:17. > :17:17.suffered. Tiny villages, in remote areas, they bore their share of
:17:18. > :17:21.losses too. And a way of life that had existed
:17:22. > :17:26.for centuries would change forever. The Heligan estate
:17:27. > :17:28.in Cornwall has been owned by the Tremayne family
:17:29. > :17:37.for more than 400 years. Before the war Heligan enjoyed
:17:38. > :17:40.a golden age. It was known
:17:41. > :17:43.for its elegant gardens. More than 20 workers were employed
:17:44. > :17:48.by the landowner Jack Tremayne. We're here
:17:49. > :17:59.in Heligan's head gardener's office and it would be recognisable to
:18:00. > :18:03.the men of that 1914 period. Sadly not many of Heligan's records
:18:04. > :18:06.have survived from that era but we do have access to the Heligan labour
:18:07. > :18:09.books which show that in April 1914 There would have been labourers,
:18:10. > :18:17.there would have been carpenters, there would have been stone masons
:18:18. > :18:22.amongst the men working here. This rural Edwardian
:18:23. > :18:25.existence would be shattered He lived in the nearby village
:18:26. > :18:37.of Gorran Haven with his wife Laura In 1917 he was called up to
:18:38. > :18:42.the army. The next year Charles was wounded
:18:43. > :18:45.and transferred to a war hospital Laura was in Cornwall
:18:46. > :18:57.and obviously didn't know what was happening - she received
:18:58. > :18:59.a telegram telling her about Charles's wounds, that's the first
:19:00. > :19:02.thing she really knew about it. Charles wrote many letters to
:19:03. > :19:04.his wife and daughter In the beginning he
:19:05. > :19:09.used to write himself and then he was so ill the nurses
:19:10. > :19:12.wrote for him. I think he used to It was mainly about his family,
:19:13. > :19:17.his wife, his child But, within a few days,
:19:18. > :19:25.Laura received a letter He wrote that Charles was feeble
:19:26. > :19:29.but still thinking of his family. On the back there was
:19:30. > :19:32.a hastily written postscript. I called again at the ward where
:19:33. > :19:35.your husband was before mailing this
:19:36. > :19:37.letter and I regret to have to I'm sure Laura would
:19:38. > :19:45.have been absolutely devastated because she had hope he
:19:46. > :19:48.was going to survive and then suddenly to be told he'd died would
:19:49. > :19:53.be absolutely heartbreaking for her. Charles Ball
:19:54. > :19:55.and several other Heligan workers The house at Heligan served
:19:56. > :20:06.as a hospital during the war, after which Jack Tremayne returned
:20:07. > :20:12.to his estate. Many of his garden team had perished
:20:13. > :20:19.and it had a significant effect He said he couldn't live with
:20:20. > :20:23.the ghosts of the place and he eventually emigrated to Italy
:20:24. > :20:27.in 1923. He was the last Squire Tremayne
:20:28. > :20:36.to live at Heligan, 91 years ago. Heligan fell into decline and
:20:37. > :20:38.by the Second World War It was only in the 1990s that
:20:39. > :20:44.they were rescued and restored. Heligan is now a tribute to
:20:45. > :20:49.those long lost gardeners who Today the estate continues to employ
:20:50. > :20:56.generations of local people, Toby is the great great grandson
:20:57. > :21:06.of estate worker Charles Ball. It's funny how everything's
:21:07. > :21:13.so connected - my great great grandfather worked here over
:21:14. > :21:29.100 years ago, I'm sort of gardens. Yesterday at dawn people
:21:30. > :21:32.living in villages, gathered around the war memorial and they read out
:21:33. > :21:43.the names of those who'd lost their lives.
:21:44. > :21:54.The lost men, Charles Ball, aged 42. Richard Billing, aged 38, William
:21:55. > :22:06.Robins Guy, aged 22. John Charles Kirkin, aged 19. Names being read
:22:07. > :22:09.out in Heligan there. The focus is the service at Westminster Abbey and
:22:10. > :22:13.the gradual distinguishing of 2,000 candles. All over the country,
:22:14. > :22:17.people are responding to the call for lights out, an invitation to
:22:18. > :22:22.switch off the lights, to leave on maybe a single lamp to burn a candle
:22:23. > :22:27.for a shared moment of reflection, later this evening, a chance to
:22:28. > :22:33.reflect,if you like, upon the loss and the devastation, the brutality
:22:34. > :22:38.and sacrifice of the First World War generation. In the words of the
:22:39. > :22:41.Royal British Legion, a million cannedled for a million -- candles
:22:42. > :22:47.for a million men. A sense of the activities taking place today, the
:22:48. > :22:52.Derbyshire village of Brassington, the lights are going out across the
:22:53. > :23:00.village, leaving just one light at the local church, St James' church.
:23:01. > :23:04.Very famous, iconic building, Blackpool tower, the illuminations
:23:05. > :23:08.have been switched off to mark the centenary there. That will tell
:23:09. > :23:11.everyone in Blackpool and the surrounding area that this First
:23:12. > :23:17.World War commemoration is happening. Not far from us here at
:23:18. > :23:25.Westminster Abbey, along the Thames, lights to go out across Tower
:23:26. > :23:31.Bridge, one of the most powerful symbols of London. This landmark,
:23:32. > :23:35.the lights will out, apart from a few safety bulbs along the way, will
:23:36. > :23:41.tell everyone, again, that the people of London, too, are thinking
:23:42. > :23:46.of what happened a century ago. Folkestone, we mentioned it earlier,
:23:47. > :23:50.because millions of troops went through Folkestone on their way to
:23:51. > :23:55.the channel to cross over to France. Ceremony is being planned there,
:23:56. > :24:00.which recognises its part in the story, the port, which was so
:24:01. > :24:18.heavily used and Larry Lamb is there to tell us about what is going on.
:24:19. > :24:24.I think Larry is there, but maybe we can't hear him. That's a shame
:24:25. > :24:29.because Larry was going to tell us about the events in Folkestone,
:24:30. > :24:34.where they've been looking at that new memorial arch, which was
:24:35. > :24:39.unveiled a short while ago today by Prince Harry. Of course, that was
:24:40. > :24:44.before Prince Harry went over to Belgium. Then they'll be having a
:24:45. > :24:49.military march past, to retrace the steps of so many of those troops who
:24:50. > :24:53.went through Folkestone 100 years ago. That's where we are. That's
:24:54. > :24:57.Folkestone. If Larry pops up, we'll go back to him straight away. Guests
:24:58. > :25:01.with me still in the studio, I'm glad to say, Shirley is still with
:25:02. > :25:06.me and two special guests have joined us. We have Kristina
:25:07. > :25:11.Reynolds, and we have David Taylor. You're here because you're the
:25:12. > :25:16.granddaughter of private Percy Buck and David you're here as the
:25:17. > :25:20.grandson of private William Taylor. I'm very pleased you joined us and
:25:21. > :25:23.we've been chatting with Shirley a short while ago. You've brought in a
:25:24. > :25:30.wonderful selection of things for us. I'll start with you to say, tell
:25:31. > :25:35.me something about Private Percy Buck and the things you've brought
:25:36. > :25:39.to share with us. Percy was in the 1st Battalion of the Hertfordshire
:25:40. > :25:46.regiment, which was the TA. He was in there for many years, before war
:25:47. > :25:54.was declared. He went to war, like so many did, he was killed in 1917
:25:55. > :25:58.on the third battle of Ypres, which I think is now known as
:25:59. > :26:03.Passchendaele. He was killed on the first day. He was shot in the side
:26:04. > :26:09.and fell into a shell hole. He was too severely wounded to be moved and
:26:10. > :26:14.I think about 24 hours or maybe longer after, another German unit
:26:15. > :26:20.came along and one of the soldiers found him and found him clutching a
:26:21. > :26:23.photograph of his wife and child and himself and he'd written his address
:26:24. > :26:29.on the back saying whoever finds this could they return it back home.
:26:30. > :26:34.You've brought the photo with you? We haven't got the photo at all. We
:26:35. > :26:41.don't know what's happened to that. We assume, it's the section in the
:26:42. > :26:47.middle of this photo. This is himself with his wife and baby. It
:26:48. > :26:52.was a post card size. The German soldier sent it to the Red Cross.
:26:53. > :26:56.They called it East Germany, which was Poland then, I think. He it
:26:57. > :27:01.translated and sent it to Switzerland and then Switzerland
:27:02. > :27:04.sent it back to my Nan so she knew he'd been killed. The news got
:27:05. > :27:08.through and there we can see, there's the letter there.
:27:09. > :27:14.Essentially, the letter did deliver the very sad news. Yes. You've kept
:27:15. > :27:19.these and you treasure them clearly. Yes. I'm just wondering how much
:27:20. > :27:23.work it's been for you to reconstruct the story or is it a
:27:24. > :27:26.story that's come down through generations of the family? How are
:27:27. > :27:31.you so familiar with it? My father told me the story many years ago
:27:32. > :27:36.when he came across a box with some of these things in. He was quite sad
:27:37. > :27:39.to find the photograph wasn't there, because he does remember seeing it
:27:40. > :27:43.when he was younger, but it wasn't in his mother's things. But he still
:27:44. > :27:49.had the letter and the death penny and everything. They obviously,
:27:50. > :27:53.after he died, they were passed down to myself and my brother. When you
:27:54. > :27:57.say death penny, explain very quickly what that is. This is the
:27:58. > :28:03.death penny. This was handed out to all the families who had someone
:28:04. > :28:10.killed in war. David, I'll bring you in. Tell us about your relative,
:28:11. > :28:17.your an tore and the -- ancestor and the story. My grandfather, 100 years
:28:18. > :28:25.ago tonight he was at the camp in the Chilterns, waiting to hear what
:28:26. > :28:32.was rambling, then they went off to Suffolk and by 4th November, they
:28:33. > :28:40.were in France. As a result of that, they were called old contemptibles.
:28:41. > :28:45.He had the Mons star. He had a wallet which saved his life during
:28:46. > :28:51.the battle of Passchendaele, which I've brought along. He kept the
:28:52. > :28:56.wallet in his tunic breast pocket. Luckily that and the photos that
:28:57. > :29:01.were inside it, took the impact of the shrapnel and saved his What a
:29:02. > :29:05.life. Remarkable story. Yes, he was there at the beginning and he was
:29:06. > :29:11.there at the end. Gosh, and in terms of, again, your family story, that
:29:12. > :29:15.story being passed down, people relating it with pride. How much do
:29:16. > :29:20.you know about him as a person? Well, he was my granddad. I didn't
:29:21. > :29:26.really know him until he was in his 70s and 80s. He was a gardener by
:29:27. > :29:31.profession. He was just a granddad. He loved his bowls. How much did he
:29:32. > :29:35.talk about his wartime past? Not very much. They kept it to
:29:36. > :29:40.themselves. Obviously, they'd seen some very horrible sights.
:29:41. > :29:46.Personally, he had won his military medal by going out and rescuing a
:29:47. > :29:50.comrade and that friendship stayed with him for the rest of their
:29:51. > :29:54.lives. It's lovely of you both to come in and share your stories.
:29:55. > :29:56.Interesting, Shirley, just to listen to individual stories, which
:29:57. > :30:01.actually very different, but they convey lots of the emotion and power
:30:02. > :30:05.of that time. And extraordinary aspects of history. Suddenly, you
:30:06. > :30:11.realise that this memory has been passed down by these older relatives
:30:12. > :30:14.to our two guests. That's a marvellous Thank you thing. Very
:30:15. > :30:17.much for coming in. Lovely to see you. I should remind you, because
:30:18. > :30:23.we're wanting to be underlining the fact that there are lots of
:30:24. > :30:26.different ways for you to take part in tonight's events, the
:30:27. > :30:31.commemorations. People all over the country preparing to reflect on the
:30:32. > :30:36.start of the First World War. Westminster Abbey bathed in the
:30:37. > :30:39.light of 2,000 candles before they are gradually extinguished during
:30:40. > :30:44.the service that will begin shortly. You can join in at home, either by
:30:45. > :30:48.lighting your own candle or if you prefer, a very different way of
:30:49. > :30:53.joining in, you can download an app, it's a special app that's been
:30:54. > :30:59.created for today, by the award-winning video artist Jeremy
:31:00. > :31:03.Della. It's called "lights out". Access that, at 10pm, a flame will
:31:04. > :31:08.appear and burn for just one hour, going out at exactly 11pm. You don't
:31:09. > :31:11.need to have a proper candle, you can actually do it digitally as
:31:12. > :31:16.well, just to show that there are different ways of taking part. So
:31:17. > :31:20.we're about half an hour from the beginning of the service in
:31:21. > :31:25.Westminster Abbey. Anyone who's visited the abbey will know straight
:31:26. > :31:29.away as you walk through the great West Door behind us, the first thing
:31:30. > :31:34.you see is the grave of the st un Grave of the Unknown Warrior, the
:31:35. > :31:37.focus of tonight's vigil. The grave placed there as a response to the
:31:38. > :31:50.unprecedented loss of life in the First World War.
:31:51. > :31:53.Over a million British and Commonwealth soldiers died
:31:54. > :31:58.And almost half of those are missing, lost far
:31:59. > :32:06.The First World War obliterated men in a way that is almost
:32:07. > :32:13.The battlefields remained battlefields for weeks,
:32:14. > :32:16.months or even years, making it very difficult for their comrades to
:32:17. > :32:23.The burial parties clearing the battle grounds took
:32:24. > :32:27.the identification of their dead seriously.
:32:28. > :32:35.It was horrible to have to gather the bodies,
:32:36. > :32:38.but what was far worse was dying in a foreign place without
:32:39. > :32:43.It was painful too for those waiting at home.
:32:44. > :32:45.One in every six British families suffered a direct bereavement
:32:46. > :32:53.All over the country those who did not know how their loved ones had
:32:54. > :32:58.died set up makeshift shrines as a focus for their grief.
:32:59. > :33:00.An army chaplain on the Western Front,
:33:01. > :33:04.the Reverend David Railton, had an idea when he saw a cross marking
:33:05. > :33:11.He realised those who had lost their loved ones could be given
:33:12. > :33:23.It gave him an idea that was simple, very daring, almost
:33:24. > :33:33.outrageous, which was to bring back the body of a British warrior, to
:33:34. > :33:37.bury him in Westminster Abbey among Kings, among Queens, to give him a
:33:38. > :33:44.funeral that was worthy of the greatest in the land.
:33:45. > :33:47.Railton convinced the authorities of his plan.
:33:48. > :33:49.They chose an unknown British serviceman from four unidentified
:33:50. > :33:56.The Unknown Warrior was then transported with full military
:33:57. > :34:10.When this Unknown Warrior made his final journey in the train from
:34:11. > :34:13.Dover to Victoria his carriage was painted white on the roof so that
:34:14. > :34:16.the crowds who were lining the railway cuttings
:34:17. > :34:20.as he approached could see by the light of the moon the carriage that
:34:21. > :34:24.contained, maybe, their father, their husband, their loved one.
:34:25. > :34:31.On 11th November 1920 the Unknown Warrior was drawn
:34:32. > :34:43.The King placed a wreath of red roses on the coffin before it
:34:44. > :34:57.moved onto Westminster Abbey, where it was buried in the nave.
:34:58. > :35:08.Even after half a -- a century, it is still a source of comfort to
:35:09. > :35:14.those that have lost loved ones in wars. He an ordinary servicemen,
:35:15. > :35:19.buried among poets and kings. His name is presence reflects all that
:35:20. > :35:20.is fleeting, in mortal and extraordinary about the human
:35:21. > :35:39.spirit. The idea that came from the reverend
:35:40. > :35:45.is a very powerful one. His grandson joins me now, along with Juliet
:35:46. > :35:49.Nicolson. There is a sense ever a presence of
:35:50. > :35:54.your grandfather in the abbey today. Yes, there is. His flag still hangs
:35:55. > :36:01.here, not far from the grave. That was the flag that he used throughout
:36:02. > :36:08.the war. Either for barials or services, served as a make shift
:36:09. > :36:11.altar cloth or used for parades or social occasions, either for
:36:12. > :36:19.concerts or boxing matches. It's very fitting that it is here in the
:36:20. > :36:23.Abbey. It was dedicated in 1921 in perpetual memory of the fallen. It
:36:24. > :36:29.hangs very proudly over the grave. You must be very proud of his role.
:36:30. > :36:34.Oh, indeed, very much so. Juliet, just give us a sense of the
:36:35. > :36:38.emotional power and significance of the grave, for people to come and
:36:39. > :36:45.visit when perhaps they have no grave to go to. Exact ly, two years
:36:46. > :36:50.after the war ended, there had been no repatriation, there were half a
:36:51. > :36:55.million men either missing or unidentified. So there were hundreds
:36:56. > :37:00.of thousands of families who were grieving but without a funeral and
:37:01. > :37:07.without a grave to go to. This one man, who arrived here in this
:37:08. > :37:12.beautiful Abbey, with the simplicity of his webbing belt and his helmet
:37:13. > :37:18.on the top of the coffin, nothing grand, nothing to do with Nelson on
:37:19. > :37:24.top of a column, just a humble, young, unidentified man, so we
:37:25. > :37:28.assume, to whom people could bring flowers, to whom children who had
:37:29. > :37:33.lost their fathers could imagine that this was, as one little boy was
:37:34. > :37:37.heard to do, this is a beautiful garden, they've made for my father.
:37:38. > :37:44.So it's had an enduring significance, I think, the grave of
:37:45. > :37:47.the unknown soldier, thanks to David's extraordinarily amazing
:37:48. > :37:52.grandfather, even the Royal Family, when they come here, when the
:37:53. > :37:59.monarch comes to be crowned, he or she side steps that grave, no other
:38:00. > :38:03.grave in the Abbey, but the Unknown Warrior is given the special dignity
:38:04. > :38:23.above no And the other. Focus of the service tonight. Thank you both.
:38:24. > :38:34.It is fast filling up. Nearly 2,000 invited people here, very much the
:38:35. > :38:37.living. It's one of the features of Westminster Abbey that the living
:38:38. > :38:41.can walk anywhere they like over the memorial stones of the greatest
:38:42. > :38:44.names in British history, the one place they cannot walk is over the
:38:45. > :38:49.Grave of the Unknown Warrior, protected tonight by flowers of the
:38:50. > :38:57.Four Nations and those are the flowers from gardens of Britain and
:38:58. > :39:02.sown amongst them seeds of poppies, which are reserved for the Armistice
:39:03. > :39:06.Day. We shall be at the tomb at the end of the service. In this
:39:07. > :39:16.evening's service at Westminster Abbey, David Morrisey will read the
:39:17. > :39:20.poment 1914 by will Fred Owen who is commemorated in Poets' Corner. Out
:39:21. > :39:24.of a war of such brutality that killed millions came art, literature
:39:25. > :39:31.and music of enduring elegance and beauty. The poet has been looking at
:39:32. > :39:34.the life of Wilfred Owen and how one of the great voices of the war
:39:35. > :39:42.emerged from the experience of the Western Front.
:39:43. > :39:44.What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?
:39:45. > :39:45.Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
:39:46. > :39:50.Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle
:39:51. > :40:07.What I find fascinating is because of his experiences on the Western
:40:08. > :40:12.front he was trying to find a new way to write about the war, forging
:40:13. > :40:18.a new language. Most of the poems he was known for were written in a 15
:40:19. > :40:20.month period, far away from the battlefields of France.
:40:21. > :40:22.Wilfred Owen was born in 1893 in Shropshire.
:40:23. > :40:25.From a very young age he always knew he wanted to be a poet.
:40:26. > :40:28.When war came he joined as an officer in 1915 and was quickly
:40:29. > :40:35.He was tasked with guarding a dugout under continuous heavy fire
:40:36. > :40:44.It was an utterly harrowing experience.
:40:45. > :40:45.Owen saw his men dying, being drowned,
:40:46. > :40:56.In January 1917 he wrote to his mother.
:40:57. > :40:59.My own sweet mother, I can see no excuse
:41:00. > :41:01.for deceiving you about these last four days.
:41:02. > :41:07.I have not been at the Front, I have been in front
:41:08. > :41:13.The ground was not mud, not sloppy mud, but an octopus of
:41:14. > :41:16.sucking clay, three, four, and five feet deep relieved only
:41:17. > :41:24.Men have been known to drown in them.
:41:25. > :41:29.In the letters Owen wrote from the front to his mother we can
:41:30. > :41:33.see many of the subjects that would later become important in his poems.
:41:34. > :41:36.This need to tell the unvarnished truth, a kind of survivors report
:41:37. > :41:38.if you like, and also a growing affection
:41:39. > :41:48.In April 1917 Owen was blown in the air by a shell at Savy Wood.
:41:49. > :41:50.The explosion killed a fellow officer and Owen spent several
:41:51. > :41:58.This horrific experience left him with shell shock.
:41:59. > :42:01.He was given leave for six months and sent to Edinburgh to recover
:42:02. > :42:08.Dr Guy Cuthbertson is an expert on Wilfred Owen.
:42:09. > :42:11.He believes Owen's time at Craiglockhart was vital to
:42:12. > :42:21.Why was Craiglockhart so important for Owen?
:42:22. > :42:24.The men had caring and understanding staff treating them,
:42:25. > :42:27.lucky to be there rather than in some other hospitals at the time.
:42:28. > :42:30.Here he got to mix with posh, educated people,
:42:31. > :42:34.a different kind of feel for him from his own schooldays.
:42:35. > :42:35.At Craiglockhart Owen met influential artists like
:42:36. > :42:41.His talent blossomed and he went on to write most of his greatest
:42:42. > :42:47.poems here such as Anthem for Doomed Youth and Dulce et Decorum Est.
:42:48. > :42:51.By June 1918 Owen was passed fit for service.
:42:52. > :42:55.Owen's friends implored him to remain at home, Sassoon even
:42:56. > :42:58.threatened to stab him in the leg to prevent him from going back,
:42:59. > :43:04.His time at Craiglockhart had made him realise that the war needed him
:43:05. > :43:15.He needed to go back to bear witness to the suffering his companions had
:43:16. > :43:18.gone through, the horror, the terror, the awfulness of war.
:43:19. > :43:25.But the war that had forged Owen was ultimately to destroy him.
:43:26. > :43:27.On November 4th, 1918 Wilfred Owen was shot and killed, just seven
:43:28. > :43:37.The unflinching realism and the beauty of the poetry he left behind
:43:38. > :43:50.have made Owen one of the greatest voices of the First World War.
:43:51. > :43:53.In a draft preface to a book of poems that was never to
:43:54. > :43:56.be published in his lifetime, Owen wrote, "Above all I am not
:43:57. > :43:59.My subject is War, and the pity of War.
:44:00. > :44:16.the Abbey along with actress Rachel Stirling who is taking part in the
:44:17. > :44:22.service which starts in a few moments' time. David, it really is a
:44:23. > :44:27.very, very poignant poem, 1914, about going into darkness. It is.
:44:28. > :44:31.Also at the beginning of the war, for him, many of his poments with
:44:32. > :44:35.famous towards the end of the war and the atrocities during the war.
:44:36. > :44:39.But this poem, given its title 1914 is right at the beginning of the
:44:40. > :44:43.war. I didn't know it actually, funny enough. It's such a privilege
:44:44. > :44:51.to be reading it tonight in this amazing setting as well. So, I feel
:44:52. > :44:55.a bit nervous, actually! We all are. We had a rehearsal today and felt
:44:56. > :44:59.fine about it. Coming in and seeing everybody come in and you know, what
:45:00. > :45:02.it means and people in their uniform for some reason, that also sets the
:45:03. > :45:10.tone in a different way. It's a great privilege for all of us. Is
:45:11. > :45:14.that how you feel? Yes, what's so extraordinary about this service is
:45:15. > :45:18.it commemorates a moment with naivety we went into war, the young
:45:19. > :45:23.boys signing up didn't know what they were in for, the world didn't
:45:24. > :45:29.know what they were about to endure. And I think it's pitched perfectly,
:45:30. > :45:32.a commemoration of that naivety actually. There's something
:45:33. > :45:36.profoundly moving about the First World War, I find, because we just
:45:37. > :45:40.didn't know about the ramifications of this sort of battle. So to be
:45:41. > :45:45.here today is a great privilege. And for us all to reflect as well. Thank
:45:46. > :45:52.you very much for being here and up better get off because the service
:45:53. > :45:56.is starting shortly. Thank you both. Thanks to Sian and the guests. A few
:45:57. > :46:00.minutes to go and Shirley Williams is still with me. We have the best
:46:01. > :46:03.view in the house. That's why I'm here, It's nice wonderful. To have
:46:04. > :46:07.your company. Before the service, I want to share with you one thing.
:46:08. > :46:12.You mentioned, we were talking about your mother, and her remarkable
:46:13. > :46:16.legacy. You revealed to me there is actually a very modern link with
:46:17. > :46:22.today's Germany. There is very pleasingly. Last month, I got
:46:23. > :46:27.invited with my best friend Helga, a German Jewish descent and came as a
:46:28. > :46:30.refugee to Britain in 1939. We've been friends since we were at
:46:31. > :46:34.university together. The city of Hamburg, which was the one which was
:46:35. > :46:42.most devastated by British and American raids in 1943 and 44,
:46:43. > :46:46.almost destroyed, invited me to agree that my mother could be the
:46:47. > :46:51.person after whom they named the new embankment along the canal in the
:46:52. > :46:58.middle of Hamburg. We had a wonderful ceremony. The minister of
:46:59. > :47:05.culture and the local councillor for the area turned up and we stood
:47:06. > :47:09.there and watching the naming of the Hamburg embankment and it was a
:47:10. > :47:12.marvellous moment because my mother would most have longed for
:47:13. > :47:17.reconciliation between the two enemy nations both of which she cared for
:47:18. > :47:22.very much. It's called? The Vera Britten bank. Glad we were able to
:47:23. > :47:25.share it. Thanks very much. A century on from the start of one of
:47:26. > :47:28.the bloodiest conflicts in the history of the world, there is
:47:29. > :47:31.no-one left alive in the United Kingdom who fought through those
:47:32. > :47:37.years. Thanks to the work of the imperial war muse zeal, the thoughts
:47:38. > :47:39.and -- Imperial War Museum, the thoughts of those men have been
:47:40. > :47:44.preserved. As people come together and prepare to reflect on the
:47:45. > :47:50.immense sacrifice of the Great War generation, let the last words be
:47:51. > :47:56.theirs. ( On the 3 rd, August 19 #14, mobilisation orders came out.
:47:57. > :48:03.We were all very excited. Most of us wanted to be out in France before
:48:04. > :48:07.the war was over by Christmas. It was a great thing, said by the
:48:08. > :48:12.papers, it would be over by Christmas. I wasn't excited. I was
:48:13. > :48:17.apprehensive. I didn't believe the war was going to be over by
:48:18. > :48:20.Christmas. I had a feeling that it wasn't going to be all together
:48:21. > :48:36.quick. Joo-Ho over the top we go. As soon
:48:37. > :48:45.as we get over the top, the fear has left you. It's terror. You don't
:48:46. > :48:54.look. You see. You don't hear. You listen. Your nose is filled with
:48:55. > :49:01.fumes and death. Your weapon and you are one. The veneer of civilisation
:49:02. > :49:08.has dropped away. Here we were a gang of boys and all the time
:49:09. > :49:13.Kuwazuru saying to -- and all the time, one was saying to oneself, "If
:49:14. > :49:22.they can take it, I can." Then a shell is on top of you and you break
:49:23. > :49:28.completely. Even the rats became hysterical. They came to seek refuge
:49:29. > :49:36.from this terrific artillery fire. And then, the British Army went over
:49:37. > :49:44.the top. What was it that we soldiers went for each other like
:49:45. > :49:51.mad dogs, to fire at each other from a distance, to drop bombs is
:49:52. > :49:57.something impersonal, but to see each other's white in the eyes and
:49:58. > :50:07.then to run with the bayonet against a man, it was against my conception
:50:08. > :50:13.and against my inner feeling. And there was mud, mud everywhere. Every
:50:14. > :50:20.shell hole was a sea of filthy, oozing mud and the fatigue in that
:50:21. > :50:24.mud was something terrible. When you haven't had sleep for several nights
:50:25. > :50:31.and when you haven't had rest and sometimes hardly a meal, it did get
:50:32. > :50:38.you. You reached a point where there was no beyond. As we withdrew over
:50:39. > :50:45.the ground that had been captured that day, the sight was incredible.
:50:46. > :50:49.It was just like a flock lying asleep in the field. Quite a number
:50:50. > :50:54.of the men were still alive and they were crying out and begging for
:50:55. > :51:04.water. One hefty chap grabbed me round both legs and held me. In the
:51:05. > :51:07.years that have passed, that man's pleadings have haunted me. Yes, it
:51:08. > :51:13.was a dreadful experience, there's no doubt about that. Still those of
:51:14. > :51:24.us survived think ourselves jolly lucky. The voices of yesterday, and
:51:25. > :51:29.those voices echoing really throughout Westminster Abbey
:51:30. > :51:32.tonight. The Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, among the congregation.
:51:33. > :51:40.Everyone with a candle. There will be 2,000 candles lit in the Abbey.
:51:41. > :51:45.Gradually, those candles will be extinguished during the service
:51:46. > :51:51.until there's just one candle left at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.
:51:52. > :52:00.The Duchess of Cornwall will be responsible for extinguishing that
:52:01. > :52:05.last candle. Other venues sharing in this solemn experience, there we
:52:06. > :52:09.have lights going out across Tower Bridge in London. And they'll just
:52:10. > :52:18.leave the safety lights across the public walkways. A dramatic gesture.
:52:19. > :52:24.Then if we look at Burnley, locals gathering at the war memorial after
:52:25. > :52:33.a candle lit procession there. Lights going out right across
:52:34. > :52:37.Burnley town. Derbyshire, Brassington. They're switching every
:52:38. > :52:44.light off there, leaving just one candle burning. That's at St James'
:52:45. > :52:52.church. Let's go to Wales, to Cardiff.
:52:53. > :52:58.That's unmistakably Landaff cathedral. Special service there to
:52:59. > :53:04.mark the centenary that we are remembering. To Downing Street, all
:53:05. > :53:08.lights switched off on this anniversary. Leaving a single candle
:53:09. > :53:14.burning there at the door of Number Ten.
:53:15. > :53:22.To Northern Ireland, a special art installation at the City Hall by Bob
:53:23. > :53:26.and Roberta Smith. Then down to Kent, Folkestone, where we've been
:53:27. > :53:30.already tonight, torch-lit parade making its way to the war memorial
:53:31. > :53:33.and they're passing that new memorial arch, which was dedicated
:53:34. > :53:40.earlier today by Prince Harry. That's Folkestone. Now, let's look
:53:41. > :53:47.at Westminster. Because this has been a bit of a closely guarded
:53:48. > :53:51.secret. A light installation calls Spectra, illuminated at Victoria
:53:52. > :53:56.tower gardens, next to the House of Lords, to mark this centenary, a
:53:57. > :54:01.tower of intense white light to reach 15 kilometres into the night
:54:02. > :54:06.sky. It will shine for the next week, a very dramatic new addition
:54:07. > :54:09.to the London skyline. Glasgow Cathedral, we saw the service in
:54:10. > :54:13.honour of the Commonwealth at the Glasgow Cathedral this morning and
:54:14. > :54:20.tonight, people gathering there for their special vigil service. The
:54:21. > :54:24.single candle burning there. To Blackpool, we saw the tower earlier.
:54:25. > :54:33.The lights going out on Blackpool tower. Such a powerful symbol of the
:54:34. > :54:41.respect and the reverence and the remembrance that today is all about.
:54:42. > :54:44.Back here, just a few yards from Westminster Abbey, the Houses of
:54:45. > :54:50.Parliament, one of the great, iconic buildings of the world, lights being
:54:51. > :54:54.switched off across the Palace of Westminster and there we have the
:54:55. > :54:57.lights going off on the everyoning bankment and the terrace of the
:54:58. > :55:07.House of Commons and House of Lords, we can just make out the great face
:55:08. > :55:12.of Big Ben. A wonderful series of very powerful tributes as the lights
:55:13. > :55:18.go out across the United Kingdom. We look forward to this special
:55:19. > :55:26.vigil and service at Westminster Abbey itself. It's due to begin and
:55:27. > :55:32.Eddie Butler is there for us. Westminster Abbey, externally
:55:33. > :55:38.illuminated and internally too. But the theme tonight is light going
:55:39. > :55:47.out, we are one hour and five minutes away from the hour of 11pm.
:55:48. > :55:55.1pm on August 4th, 1914, Britain went to war. The Abbey seems such a
:55:56. > :55:59.safe haven, but even it was touched by the First World War. A bomb fell
:56:00. > :56:06.on the newly-built choir school next door. It buried itself eight feet in
:56:07. > :56:11.the ground and didn't explode. 12 servants of the Abbey, including
:56:12. > :56:15.eight former choristers went off to war and didn't come home.
:56:16. > :56:20.Representing Her Majesty, the Queen tonight, Her Royal Highness the
:56:21. > :56:27.Duchess of Cornwall, just arriving outside the Abbey to be greeted by
:56:28. > :56:29.the Dean of Westminster. Dr John Hall, who will lead tonight's
:56:30. > :56:57.service. Her Royal Highness has a history, a
:56:58. > :57:07.family history, of tragedy in the war. Three of her great uncles,
:57:08. > :57:18.Alec, Henry and Hugh were all killed in the space of 18 months in the
:57:19. > :57:23.war. The Dean of Westminster will present the Duchess of Cornwall to
:57:24. > :57:30.the four bishops who are here tonight. The right rerchd Nigel
:57:31. > :58:02.Muculloch. -- Right Reverend. Richard Charters, bishop of London.
:58:03. > :58:15.The Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols. And
:58:16. > :58:19.finally, representing the eadvantage list -- Evangelist church, who will
:58:20. > :58:34.give a prayer in German later in the evening.
:58:35. > :58:46.The Duchess holding her candle. 2,000 candles are now lit. They will
:58:47. > :58:50.go out in sections and the last to go out will be the single candle
:58:51. > :58:56.there, by the Grave of the Unknown Warrior.
:58:57. > :59:00.The choir of Westminster Abbey and the collegiate procession makes its
:59:01. > :00:04.way down the knave. The choir consists of 12 men known
:00:05. > :00:11.as Labour goers and 22 choirboys. -- lay vicars.
:00:12. > :00:39.Carrying the cross of lights, James Grosse, who was speaking earlier.
:00:40. > :00:43.# Plenteous grace with thee is found
:00:44. > :02:09.Welcome to Westminster Abbey, this House of God,
:02:10. > :02:12.the place of burial, amongst the graves and memorials of Kings and
:02:13. > :02:17.Queens of this Kingdom and many of its greatest men and women, of an
:02:18. > :02:29.The Grave reminds us of the meaning of war but our focus
:02:30. > :02:36.In solemnly commemorating the centenary of the outbreak
:02:37. > :02:41.of the First World War, as we reflect on the failure of the human
:02:42. > :02:47.spirit that led to an inexorable slide to war, may we spend
:02:48. > :03:48.# Kyrie eleison # Christe eleison
:03:49. > :04:29.# Kyrie eleison # Lord, have mercy
:04:30. > :07:24.# Kyrie eleison # Christe eleison
:07:25. > :07:33.Longing for the renewal of creation, and seeking the peace of
:07:34. > :07:35.God's kingdon, we are bold to pray:
:07:36. > :07:38.Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,
:07:39. > :07:53.as we forgive those who trespass against us.
:07:54. > :07:58.And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
:07:59. > :08:04.For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, For ever and ever.
:08:05. > :08:29.Sir Hugh Strong now presents his reflection on the world. Cedric Gray
:08:30. > :08:34.was Foreign Secretary for seven years, making him the longest ever
:08:35. > :08:43.serving holder of that office. Today, we remember him for a single
:08:44. > :08:49.sentence. One evening, during the last week before the outbreak of the
:08:50. > :08:52.Great War, or so the editor of the Westminster Gazette reminded him, he
:08:53. > :08:56.looked out of the window and remarked, the lamps are going out
:08:57. > :09:11.all over Europe, we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime. He
:09:12. > :09:15.was a liberal, but his regret reveals an underlying conservatism.
:09:16. > :09:17.He knew that war could be the midwife of resolution, a point
:09:18. > :09:35.rightly recognised in Russia in 1914. He valued order, international
:09:36. > :09:45.as well as domestic. He believed it rested on a common foundation. His
:09:46. > :09:52.was for a continent, so it embraced Britain's enemies as well as
:09:53. > :09:55.friends. Many of those living in Britain thought their society was on
:09:56. > :10:03.the brink of fundamental change, even without war. Irish nationalism,
:10:04. > :10:10.the strength of the trade unions and the demand for votes, not just for
:10:11. > :10:16.women but for the many disenfranchised men were more
:10:17. > :10:30.pressing than the international situation. On the 4th of August,
:10:31. > :10:41.these ideas were trumped. They recognised it was a day to which the
:10:42. > :10:45.word historic would apply. A decade later, he could not recall using the
:10:46. > :10:51.sentence for which he has become so well-known. He concluded that he had
:10:52. > :10:56.set it on the third, the day before Britain sent its ultimatum to
:10:57. > :11:00.Britain, not on the fourth. His confusion captures the wider
:11:01. > :11:11.uncertainty of the country as a whole. No longer fully at peace, not
:11:12. > :11:19.yet at four. All work apprehensive. -- at war. Each for his or her
:11:20. > :11:24.reason. Most were united by the invasion of algebra. All work united
:11:25. > :11:32.by the realisation that their lives were likely never to be the same
:11:33. > :11:37.again. They did not know how long the war would last or how many would
:11:38. > :11:40.die. In this centenary, we must avoid condescension. The
:11:41. > :11:44.condescension that comes from hindsight and the condescension that
:11:45. > :11:51.says we would have acted differently. Our role is less to
:11:52. > :11:57.judge than to understand. We have over four years in which to do that.
:11:58. > :12:01.So evident are the memorials to the war, in our communities and on the
:12:02. > :12:02.battlefields, that we can forget that they
:12:03. > :12:10.battlefields, that we can forget that were not there in 1914. In
:12:11. > :12:14.1914, our predecessors were embarking on a journey, in which
:12:15. > :12:19.they would discover things about themselves and about the world which
:12:20. > :12:31.100 years ago existed, if at all, only in their imaginations. 100
:12:32. > :12:36.years on, we too are about to embark on a journey, not too much on a
:12:37. > :12:40.journey of remembrance, not least because few among us have memory of
:12:41. > :12:47.this war, but more a journey like theirs, a journey of discovery, a
:12:48. > :12:51.journey which seeks to understand the past certainly, but also a
:12:52. > :13:04.journey which helps us to understand our own world and its continuing
:13:05. > :13:06.engagement with war. David Morrissey will read 1914 by
:13:07. > :13:13.Wilfred Owen now. War broke: and now the Winter of the
:13:14. > :13:15.world With perishing great darkness closes
:13:16. > :13:18.in. Is over all the width of
:13:19. > :13:27.Europe whirled, Rending the sails of progress.
:13:28. > :13:31.Rent or furled Are all Art's ensigns. Verse wails.
:13:32. > :13:34.Now begin Famines of thought and feeling.
:13:35. > :13:40.Love's wine's thin. The grain of human Autumn rots, down
:13:41. > :13:49.hurled. For after Spring had bloomed in
:13:50. > :13:51.early Greece, And summer blazed her glory out with
:13:52. > :13:53.Rome, An Autumn softly fell, a harvest
:13:54. > :13:57.home, A slow grand age, and rich with all
:13:58. > :14:04.increase. But now, for us, wild Winter, and
:14:05. > :14:16.the need Of sowings for new Spring, and blood
:14:17. > :14:28.for seed. Blow the trumpet in Zion, sound
:14:29. > :14:34.the alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants
:14:35. > :14:39.of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, it is near -
:14:40. > :14:43.a day of darkness and gloom, Like blackness spread upon
:14:44. > :14:58.the mountains a great and powerful army comes, their like has never
:14:59. > :15:01.been from of old, nor will be again Fire devours in front of them,
:15:02. > :15:09.and behind them a flame burns. Before them the land is
:15:10. > :15:12.like the garden of Eden, but after them a desolate wilderness
:15:13. > :15:20.and nothing escapes them. Yet even now, says the Lord,
:15:21. > :15:27.return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping,
:15:28. > :15:31.and with mourning, rend Return to the Lord, your God, for he
:15:32. > :15:49.is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast
:15:50. > :16:16.love, and relents from punishing. # qui per crucem et sanguinem
:16:17. > :17:15.redemisti nos # auxiliare nobis te deprecamur
:17:16. > :17:23.Deus noster # who by the Cross and the Blood
:17:24. > :18:26.have redeemed us I must write you one more line
:18:27. > :18:47.dearest to say Goodbye before we go, as God knows
:18:48. > :18:52.when I shall see you again. I am so awfully glad we are going -
:18:53. > :19:03.it is what we have been waiting for I think there is not much doubt
:19:04. > :19:08.that we are really going: we were served out with
:19:09. > :19:12.our rifles this afternoon and we believe that we shall be
:19:13. > :19:20.at Southampton tomorrow night. So now dear it is goodbye and may
:19:21. > :19:24.we meet again if God wills. You know that if I am allowed to
:19:25. > :19:29.come back I shall feel exactly the same to you as I do now and
:19:30. > :19:35.shall be ready for you whenever you can come to me, and you know that I
:19:36. > :19:46.shall come straight to you and ask We are all fairly shouting with joy
:19:47. > :19:55.at going and I dare say we shall soon be cursing the day
:19:56. > :19:59.and then when we get back we shall Goodbye darling,
:20:00. > :20:18.may God bless and keep you. He did survive the war with severe
:20:19. > :20:21.facial injuries and he did marry his girlfriend, Joy.
:20:22. > :20:28.whose will is to restore all things in your beloved Son,
:20:29. > :20:33.govern the hearts and minds of those in authority,
:20:34. > :20:37.and bring the families of the nations,
:20:38. > :20:43.divided and torn apart by the ravages of sin,
:20:44. > :20:48.to be subject to his just and gentle rule;
:20:49. > :20:55.who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
:20:56. > :21:28.The first symbolic candle will now be distinguished. With that out goes
:21:29. > :21:35.a whole section of candles. Rachel Stirling.
:21:36. > :21:43.Snow is a strange white word. No ice or frost
:21:44. > :21:49.Has asked of bud or bird For Winter's cost.
:21:50. > :21:55.Yet ice and frost and snow From earth to sky
:21:56. > :22:03.This Summer land doth know. No man knows why.
:22:04. > :22:09.In all men's hearts it is. Some spirit old
:22:10. > :22:16.Hath turned with malign kiss Our lives to mould.
:22:17. > :22:24.Red fangs have torn His face. God's blood is shed.
:22:25. > :22:32.He mourns from His lone place His children dead.
:22:33. > :22:42.O! Ancient crimson curse! Corrode, consume.
:22:43. > :22:54.Give back this universe Its pristine bloom.
:22:55. > :22:58.In days to come the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established
:22:59. > :23:02.as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills;
:23:03. > :23:11.Many peoples shall come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain
:23:12. > :23:16.of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his
:23:17. > :23:22.ways and that we may walk in his paths."
:23:23. > :23:26.For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word
:23:27. > :23:34.He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate
:23:35. > :23:39.for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
:23:40. > :23:44.and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up
:23:45. > :23:55.sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
:23:56. > :23:59.The reading by the British Army chief of the general staff between
:24:00. > :24:12.2006 and 2009. # Nor the offences of
:24:13. > :24:49.our forefathers # Neither take thou vengeance of our
:24:50. > :25:33.sins # Spare thy people, whom
:25:34. > :25:59.thou hast redeemed The exciting part
:26:00. > :27:04.of the day was now to begin. I walked into the fine church
:27:05. > :27:10.and to my delight, Vespers was being The atmosphere was so moving
:27:11. > :27:19.and restful that I took out my own Office book and said evensong; then
:27:20. > :27:24.went on to another half hour of prayer, not forgetting the war,
:27:25. > :27:30.but forgetting how close it was. And then in the distance over
:27:31. > :27:34.the flat country, a continuous I remembered and looked at my
:27:35. > :27:47.watch-5.30-the time for the Attack. The contrast between Church
:27:48. > :27:52.and this! Little puffs of smoke hung
:27:53. > :27:57.about the poplars on the horizon. I knew that soon at a given moment,
:27:58. > :28:02.in broad sunny daylight as it was, the thin line of some battalion as
:28:03. > :28:08.nice as my own, would spring over Sixhorsed ammunition wagons
:28:09. > :28:17.dashed past me-it was a wonder to And as if to encourage all folk
:28:18. > :28:26.within sound of the battle, a bagpipe band of some Cameron
:28:27. > :28:31.regiment pranced up and down the road never a bit drowned by the
:28:32. > :28:38.guns, but shrieking out a sort of P- and B- were sitting at the
:28:39. > :28:47.window looking towards the sounds. I joined them, and we sat there
:28:48. > :28:52.for an hour and a half saying little, only picturing the state of
:28:53. > :28:58.those dread acres now, wondering how the attack had fared, noting subtle
:28:59. > :29:04.transitions now and then, the imposing rattle
:29:05. > :29:09.of rifle fire all along the line now battling down even the big guns;
:29:10. > :29:14.great salvoes of the latter now To-morrow I shall see some
:29:15. > :29:25.of the result, as I bend over the dying and bloodstained men who
:29:26. > :29:46.will have by then been brought in. Eternal God, from whom all thoughts
:29:47. > :29:56.of truth and peace proceed: kindle, we pray, in the hearts
:29:57. > :30:02.of all, the true love of peace, and guide with your pure and peaceable
:30:03. > :30:08.wisdom those who take counsel for the nations of the earth, that
:30:09. > :30:14.in tranquillity your kingdom may go forward, 'til the earth is filled
:30:15. > :30:21.with the knowledge of your love; Baroness Warsi will extinguish the
:30:22. > :30:56.second candle. In poets corner dame Penelope Keith
:30:57. > :31:04.will read Many Sisters to Many Brothers.
:31:05. > :31:07.When we fought campaigns (in the long Christmas rains)
:31:08. > :31:10.With soldiers spread in troops on the floor,
:31:11. > :31:15.I shot as straight as you, my losses were as few,
:31:16. > :31:22.And when in naval battle, amid cannon's rattle,
:31:23. > :31:28.My cruisers were as trim, my battleships as grim,
:31:29. > :31:37.Or, when it rained too long, and the strength of the strong
:31:38. > :31:41.Surged up and broke a way with blows,
:31:42. > :31:47.I was as fit and keen, my fists hit as black eye matched
:31:48. > :31:54.Was there a scrap or ploy in which you, the boy,
:31:55. > :31:57.Could better me? You could not climb higher,
:31:58. > :32:02.Ride straighter, run as quick (and to smoke made you sick)
:32:03. > :32:07....But I sit here, and you're under fire.
:32:08. > :32:11.Oh, it's you that have the luck, out there in blood and muck:
:32:12. > :32:15.You were born beneath a kindly star;
:32:16. > :32:19.All we dreamt, I and you, you can really go and do,
:32:20. > :32:28.In a trench you are sitting, while I am knitting
:32:29. > :32:32.A hopeless sock that never gets done.
:32:33. > :32:37.Well, here's luck, my dear; - and you've got it, no fear;
:32:38. > :32:52.How lonely sits the city that once was full of people!
:32:53. > :32:58.How like a widow she has become, she that was great among the nations!
:32:59. > :33:04.She that was a princess among the provinces has become a vassal.
:33:05. > :33:10.She weeps bitterly in the night, with tears on her cheeks;
:33:11. > :33:15.among all her lovers she has no one to comfort her; all her friends have
:33:16. > :33:21.dealt treacherously with her, they have become her enemies.
:33:22. > :33:28.Judah has gone into exile with suffering and hard
:33:29. > :33:35.servitude; she lives now among the nations, and finds no resting place;
:33:36. > :33:41.her pursuers have all overtaken her in the midst of her distress.
:33:42. > :33:46.From daughter Zion has departed all Her Majesty.
:33:47. > :33:50.Jerusalem remembers, in the days of her affliction and
:33:51. > :34:01.wandering, all the precious things that were hers in days of old.
:34:02. > :34:28.no one to help her, the foe looked on mocking over her downfall.
:34:29. > :34:49.# Drop drop slow tears and bathe those beauteous feet
:34:50. > :35:10.# which brought from heaven the news and Prince of peace
:35:11. > :35:28.# Cease not wet eyes his mercies to entreat
:35:29. > :36:17.# to cry for vengeance sin doth never cease
:36:18. > :36:38.# In your deep flood drown all my faults and fears
:36:39. > :37:35.# nor let his eye see sin but through my tears.
:37:36. > :37:41.You are nine months old, my little son, when I begin this Diary.
:37:42. > :37:46.We are parted at present, at what cost to the joy of the
:37:47. > :37:52.You are too young to understand...
:37:53. > :37:56.But there is one solemn reason that makes me start my diary tonight.
:37:57. > :38:00.Grave rumours of a possible terrible conflict of Nations are on
:38:01. > :38:04.everybody's lips, and have been gathering for some days past.
:38:05. > :38:08.If indeed the dread that is in all our hearts is justified
:38:09. > :38:11.by future events, my little boy will have some idea
:38:12. > :38:20.Therefore, my baby, whose dimpled hands, however eager,
:38:21. > :38:24.cannot yet grasp a weapon for the honour of your country,
:38:25. > :38:28.we must wait and see what the next fateful days bring forth.
:38:29. > :38:35.All was quiet at Paddington...
:38:36. > :38:39.But after the departure of the train...
:38:40. > :38:43.numbers of weeping women to file down towards the exits,
:38:44. > :38:46.accompanied some by a small son or an old man trying to console them.
:38:47. > :38:50.For the first time I realise what these scenes mean that are going
:38:51. > :38:53.on round London in every station and all day.
:38:54. > :38:56.All the reservists are being called up.
:38:57. > :39:03.Every hour makes the situation more thrilling.
:39:04. > :39:07.I grudge every moment spent indoors, out of sight of the fresh crop
:39:08. > :39:11.of news posters that seem to spring up continually.
:39:12. > :39:14.London seems to be all turned into streets, which are seething
:39:15. > :39:25.My baby, if ever you read your Mother's diary in years to come
:39:26. > :39:29.you will probably be bored by the details I give of the
:39:30. > :39:35.A few years hence it will not matter a jot where the armies happened to
:39:36. > :39:41.All that will matter to you some day is the result
:39:42. > :39:50.of the terrible suspense we grown-ups are now going through.
:39:51. > :40:11.Lord God, you hold both heaven and earth in a single peace.
:40:12. > :40:19.Let the design of your great love shine on the waste of our wraths
:40:20. > :40:28.and sorrow, and give peace to your Church, peace among nations, peace
:40:29. > :40:36.in our homes, and peace in our hearts; in Jesus Christ our Lord.
:40:37. > :40:51.The extinguishing of the third candle by Major-General Edward Smith
:40:52. > :41:04.Osborne, general officer commanding London district.
:41:05. > :41:09.And Mark Gatis reads the poem The Messages.
:41:10. > :41:11.I cannot quite remember... There were five
:41:12. > :41:14.Dropt dead beside me in the trench-and three
:41:15. > :41:17.Whispered their dying messages to me...
:41:18. > :41:19.Back from the trenches, more dead than alive,
:41:20. > :41:22.Stone-deaf and dazed, and with a broken knee,
:41:23. > :41:27.He hobbled slowly, muttering vacantly:
:41:28. > :41:30.I cannot quite remember... There were five
:41:31. > :41:33.Dropt dead beside me in the trench, and three
:41:34. > :41:40.Their friends are waiting, wondering how they thrive -
:41:41. > :41:43.Waiting a word in silence patiently...
:41:44. > :41:47.But what they said, or who their friends may be
:41:48. > :41:52.I cannot quite remember... There were five
:41:53. > :41:55.Dropt dead beside me in the trench-and three
:41:56. > :42:06.Whispered their dying messages to me...
:42:07. > :42:09.For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness",
:42:10. > :42:12.who has shone in our hearts to give the light
:42:13. > :42:19.of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
:42:20. > :42:23.But we have this treasure in clay jars,
:42:24. > :42:31.so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to
:42:32. > :42:46.We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not
:42:47. > :42:55.driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not
:42:56. > :43:03.destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the
:43:04. > :43:12.life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.
:43:13. > :43:19.For while we live, we are always being given up to death for Jesus'
:43:20. > :43:34.sake, so that the life of Jesus may be made visible in our mortal flesh.
:43:35. > :43:39.Sir Nicholas Young the chief executive of the British Red Cross.
:43:40. > :43:47.Now the choir sings some Bach and in German.
:43:48. > :46:07.Sebastian Faulks reading an extract from his novel Birdsong.
:46:08. > :46:25.There is always someone sleeping, someone strolling.
:46:26. > :46:30.Men come out from England like emsears from an unknown land. I
:46:31. > :46:37.cannot picture what it means to be at peace. I do not know how people
:46:38. > :46:43.there can lead a life. The only things that sometimes jolt us back
:46:44. > :46:50.from this transare memories of men in the set of eyes of some
:46:51. > :46:54.conscripted boy, I see a look of Douglas and I find myself rigid with
:46:55. > :47:03.imagining. I can see that man's skull open up as he bent down to his
:47:04. > :47:06.friend that summer morning. We are not contemptuous of gunfire, but we
:47:07. > :47:11.have lost the power to be afraid, shells will fall on the reserve
:47:12. > :47:18.lines and we will not stop talking. A boy lay without legs where the men
:47:19. > :47:23.took their tea from the cooker. They stepped over him. I have tried to
:47:24. > :47:32.resist the slide into this unreal world, but I lack the strength. I am
:47:33. > :47:40.tired. Now, I am tired in my soul. Many times I have lain down and I
:47:41. > :47:46.have longed for death. I feel unworthy, death will not come and I
:47:47. > :47:51.am cast adrift in a perpetual present. I do not know what I have
:47:52. > :48:01.done to live in this existence. I do not know what any of us did to tilt
:48:02. > :48:07.the world into this unnatural orbit. We came here only for a few months.
:48:08. > :48:13.No child or future generation will ever know what this was like. They
:48:14. > :48:20.will never understand. When it is over, we will go quietly among the
:48:21. > :48:26.living and we will not tell them. We will talk and sleep and go about our
:48:27. > :48:32.business like human beings. We will seal what we have seen in the
:48:33. > :48:47.silence of our hearts and no words will reach us.
:48:48. > :48:53.Herr unser Gott, taglich erleben wir bis heute Hass
:48:54. > :49:05.Wir bitten um Frieden und Versohnung der Volker, um den Willen zur
:49:06. > :49:08.Verstandigung, wo Konflikte Menschen verbittern, und um Aussohnung,
:49:09. > :49:17.Dies bitten wir durch Jesus Christus, unseren Herrn.
:49:18. > :49:33.Nick Clegg will extinguish the last of the symbolic candles and the
:49:34. > :50:02.fourth section goes out. Jennifer Pike will now play The Lark
:50:03. > :51:23.Ascending. Writ ten in 1914, before the
:51:24. > :51:30.outbreak of war. The exultation of larks, soaring over Britain about to
:51:31. > :51:36.be left behind. The composer himself joined newspaper 1914. -- joined up
:51:37. > :51:42.in 1914. He served in the royal medical corps and then in the royal
:51:43. > :51:49.garrison artillery served at the second battle of the Somme in 1918.
:51:50. > :51:58.Four guardsmen have now placed themselves around the Grave of the
:51:59. > :52:05.Unknown Warrior and Darren Thomas of the Scots Guards, Stephen Walsh of
:52:06. > :52:14.the Irish Guards, Adam Reece of the Welsh Guards. One guard from each of
:52:15. > :53:47.the Four Nations. And the procession now makes its way towards the tomb.
:53:48. > :56:02.Jesus said, "Now my soul is troubled.
:56:03. > :56:05.And what should I say-'Father, save me from this hour?'
:56:06. > :56:09.No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour.
:56:10. > :56:14.Then a voice came from heaven, "I have glorified it,
:56:15. > :56:20.The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder.
:56:21. > :56:24.Others said, "An angel has spoken to him."
:56:25. > :56:28.Jesus answered, "This voice has come for your sake, not for mine.
:56:29. > :56:33.Now is the judgement of this world; now the ruler
:56:34. > :56:39.And I, when I am lifted up from the earth,
:56:40. > :56:45.He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
:56:46. > :56:50.Jesus said to them, "The light is with you for a little longer.
:56:51. > :56:53.Walk while you have the light, so that
:56:54. > :57:20.Now a special composition by David Matthews.
:57:21. > :58:03.# Oh to whom shall a song of battle be chanted
:58:04. > :58:24.# Not to our lord of the hosts on his ancient throne
:58:25. > :58:50.# Drowsing the ages out in Heaven alone
:58:51. > :59:11.# The celestial choirs are mute the angels have fled
:59:12. > :59:39.# Word is gone forth abroad that our lord is dead
:59:40. > :59:49.# Is it nothing to you all you that pass by
:59:50. > :00:03.# Behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow.
:00:04. > :00:40.# Oh to whom shall a song of battle be chanted
:00:41. > :01:00.# If you had only recognised on this day the things that make for peace
:01:01. > :01:23.# But now they are hidden from your eyes
:01:24. > :02:37.# Oh to whom shall a song of battle be chanted
:02:38. > :02:44.Eternal Father, the darkness is no darkness to you,
:02:45. > :02:49.and the night is as clear as the day.
:02:50. > :02:56.Accompany and protect us as we enter the night; give us eyes that watch
:02:57. > :03:05.for the dawn and hearts to learn again the lessons of love,
:03:06. > :03:10.that reconciled to one another and to you we may walk through this
:03:11. > :03:16.world's perils and sorrows as children of light;
:03:17. > :03:31.Amen. One, last, small candle to be skinning wished by the Duchess of
:03:32. > :03:55.Cornwall. 11pm on the night of August 4, 1914,
:03:56. > :04:01.Britain was at war and yet, the darkness was not complete, is not
:04:02. > :04:07.total. The Pascal candle will remain lit for the next four and a quarter
:04:08. > :04:17.years, hope that cannot be skinning wished, the flame that will not die.
:04:18. > :04:20.What we call the beginning is often the end
:04:21. > :04:25.And to make an end is to make a beginning.
:04:26. > :04:49.In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
:04:50. > :05:01.All things came into being through him, and without
:05:02. > :05:13.What has come into being in him was life, and the life was
:05:14. > :05:21.The light shines in the darkness, and
:05:22. > :05:43.The triumph of light over darkness, of good over evil. Westminster Abbey
:05:44. > :05:48.falls into darkness tonight, just after 11pm, a century ago, Britain
:05:49. > :05:57.had declared war on Germany. It was the start of the First World War.
:05:58. > :06:01.Darkness inside the abbey and outside too.
:06:02. > :06:07.Very powerful symbol of what we've been talking about all day. Shirley
:06:08. > :06:15.Williams still with me. A very moving service and some very
:06:16. > :06:19.powerful contributions. As we went through this long day, I became
:06:20. > :06:23.conscious of millions of ghosts who are mourning with us. The ghosts of
:06:24. > :06:28.all those who lost their lives in that war and in wars subsequently.
:06:29. > :06:35.The other thing, as we came towards the end of the programme and saw the
:06:36. > :06:40.indications of some kind of peace and vision for the future, I also
:06:41. > :06:49.remembered the words of one of the poets we have not quoted so far. "We
:06:50. > :06:54.must love one and other, or die." Nice to have had you with us Shirley
:06:55. > :06:58.Williams today. Thank you very much for sharing your experiences with
:06:59. > :07:04.us. Thank you very much. That brings to an end our day-long commemoration
:07:05. > :07:08.of the outbreak of the First World War, a century ago tonight. We
:07:09. > :07:12.started in Glasgow w a tribute to Commonwealth forces. We were in
:07:13. > :07:16.Belgium earlier this evening for an event which included British and
:07:17. > :07:22.German voices. Tonight, at Westminster Abbey, a candle-lit
:07:23. > :07:28.vigil to mark the hour when war was declared. A four-year conflict, as
:07:29. > :07:34.many as 20 million lives lost and it is our duty to remember. From all of
:07:35. > :07:39.the BBC team, thank you for watching and good night.