Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn lead MPs at Armistice service to commemorate end of First World War

Prime Minister Theresa May, and the leader of opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn attended an Armistice remembrance service at St Margaret's Church, London today.
Reuters/John Stillwell
Nick Charity6 November 2018

Prime Minister Theresa May has led politicians in remembering those who gave their lives during the First World War.

Mrs May and opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn attended the special service of remembrance on Tuesday at St Margaret's Church in Westminster.

Members of the House of Commons and House of Lords gathered to remember the sacrifices of Parliamentarians, officers and staff who gave their lives during the war.

Mrs May and Mr Corbyn sat next to each other for the service in the 12th Century church which nestles in the shadow of Westminster Abbey.

Prime Minister Theresa May touches a wreath during a Service of Remembrance for members of the House of Commons and House of Lords in St Margaret's church in Westminster.
PA

Commemoration events are taking place this week as the nation prepares to mark the centenary of WWI on Remembrance Sunday.

Commons Speaker John Bercow was among those who addressed the congregation as he read out the words then prime minister Lloyd George had said on November 11, 1918, as he called on fellow Parliamentarians to join him for a service at St Margaret's.

Jeremy Corbyn holds a poppy wreath in Westminster
EPA

He said: "I hope we may say that thus, this fateful morning, came to an end all wars."

As the final notes of a haunting rendition of The Last Post dissolved away, silence fell upon the church as MPs and Peers remembered the war dead, including, Parliamentarians, and parliamentary officers and staff.

Commons Speaker John Bercow speaks during the service
Getty Images

The First World War saw 264 MPs serving in the forces, with 22 being killed. In the Lords, 323 Peers went to war, with 24 dying in the conflict.

Mrs May touched a wreath that had been placed on the steps of the alter, and at one point in the service knelt.

The Labour leader laid his own wreath, and the service ended with the singing of the national anthem

The Prime Minister is due to take part in Armistice commemorations in Belgium and France later this week, before laying a wreath on the Cenotaph on Sunday.

Prince Charles will once again lead Remembrance Day services in Whitehall on Sunday as Britain commemorates the 100th anniversary of end of the war.

For the first time, a German leader will lay a wreath at the Cenotaph with president Frank-Walter Steinmeier performing the duty, in a historic act of reconciliation.

The World War One centenary has seen the Imperial War Museums (IWM), Commonwealth War Graves and Poppy Appeal organisers promote four years of historical events across the UK, and numerous other countries around the world.

The First World War Centenary Partnership led by IWM grew a network of over 3,900 not-for-profit organisations from 62 countries including museums, archives, libraries, universities, performing arts groups, schools and community groups.

Even through the official centenary finishes this week, events will be ongoing into 2020.

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