Northern Ireland prepares to mark Remembrance Sunday and all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice
The lord mayor of Belfast will lead Remembrance Sunday commemorations across Northern Ireland on Sunday in memory of all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice in service since World War One.
Councillor Tracy Kelly will lay a wreath at the cenotaph in the Garden of Remembrance at City Hall, on behalf of the citizens of Belfast, after a short ceremony at 11am.
She will be joined by a wide range of civic representatives and VIPs.
At the same time members of the royal family will lead the nation in Remembrance Sunday commemorations at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London.
Senior members of the royal family will be joined by leading UK politicians, alongside representatives of the armed forces, Commonwealth nations, and faith communities, for the two-minute silence at 11am and the National Service of Remembrance.
The proceedings continue with the wreath-laying ceremony, as the nation honours all those who have died in service, followed by the historic march past of nearly 10,000 veterans, organised by The Royal British Legion.
Across the UK, veterans and their families will reflect on the personal significance of remembrance.
This year’s commemorations will have a special resonance in recalling the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, alongside the fallen from many other conflicts.
Other ceremonies of remembrance will take place right across the UK and Northern Ireland on Sunday.
In Mid and East Antrim ceremonies will be held at the war memorials in Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne as well as villages of Ballycarry, Broughshane, Cullybackey, Glynn, Kells and Connor, and Whitehead.
Ballycarry’s commemoration was held on Friday.
Remembrance Day, also known as Armistice Day, commemorates the end of World War One. An agreement to stop fighting was reached on the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month in 1918.
It is held to remember all those who have died in wars and marked by a two-minute silence at 11am.
Remembrance Sunday is the nearest Sunday to November 11, when ceremonies are held in the UK and other Commonwealth nations
On Friday, Justice Minister Naomi Long attended the Northern Ireland Prison Service annual memorial service at Hydebank Wood. A two-minute silence was observed, after which the names of the 32 prison service personnel who lost their lives were read out by officer Ivor Dunne.
St Colmanell's church in Ahoghill, Co Antrim, and St Matthew's Church in Richhill, Co Armagh, have both adorned their spires with cascades of knitted poppies to mark the date.
Canon Simon Doogan of Ballyholme in Down and Dromore, will reflect on the season of remembrance in the Morning Service on Sunday on BBC Radio Ulster and Radio Foyle from 9.03am to 9.45am. The National Service of Remembrance will be broadcast from 10.30am.