Members of the Ryde branch of The Royal British Legion are to join thousands on a pilgrimage of Remembrance to World War One battlefield that culminates in a parade and ceremony in Ypres as part of the end of the First World War centenary commemorations this August.
The Royal British Legion event, known as Great Pilgrimage 90 (GP90), takes place between the 5th-9th August and will be one of the largest in the charity’s history.
GP90 will mark 90 years since the original Royal British Legion Pilgrimage in 1928, which saw 11,000 World War I veterans and war widows visit the battlefields of the Somme in France and Ypres in Belgium, a decade after the conflict ended.
Local Legion members, Dave Greenwood and Terry Clarkson, will represent the Ryde Branch and the local community at the event, as Standard Bearer and wreath layer respectively.
Dave and Terry will tour some of the same battlefields and cemeteries visited by those on the 1928 Pilgrimage, before marching along the original route through Ypres, to the Menin Gate on the 8th August, bearing their branch standard and a wreath.
They will join more than 2,200 other Legion representatives and dignitaries, including Civic and military guests from the UK, Commonwealth and Northern Europe who are taking part. Once at the Menin Gate, Terry will lay a wreath on behalf of the Ryde community.
Ryde Branch are working with Greenmount Primary School to bring pupil’s unique Remembrance messages to the Menin Gate, on the Branch’s wreath, where it will be displayed in a wreath installation for viewing by the general public until the end of August. The Greenmount pupil’s sentiments will be viewed and selected by Ryde’s Mayor and Deputy Mayor on Monday.
Terry Clarkson, Branch Chairman comments:
“Great Pilgrimage 90 is a unique opportunity for the Legion community to come together and bear our Standards along the same route in Ypres taken 90 years earlier by the veterans and widows of the First World War. The Ryde Branch looks forward to proudly representing Ryde at the event.”
If you want to find out more about GP90 or your local Royal British Legion branch, then visit Ryde Branch website at https://www.ryderbl.co.uk/ or contact Terry Clarkson via the RBL and Ex Servicemans club at 1 St James’s Street, Ryde.
