General Chat

Mine is 11am when I look in the mirror. But 1pm for everyone else.

An article by Matt Gurney explains the peace of the RED poppy:

"The red poppy is inherently a symbol of peace. Not just of peace as a concept — pleasant a concept as it is — but as the hard-won peace that hundreds of thousands of allies, earned at such great cost. The poppy is not a symbol of our victory — a national flag or a military battle ensign or guidon would serve more than ably in that role. Poppies are not a symbol of military conquest and national glory; indeed, they are not a symbol of any nation at all.

Why was the poppy chosen as the symbol of remembrance? As is so memorably told in John McCrae’s "In Flanders Fields", the poppies were the Belgian wildflower that went forth and multiplied so prodigiously in the blood-soaked, artillery churned soil of First World War battlefields. They added a rare splash of colour, and life, in the blasted landscapes of that brutal conflict. And the poppies bloomed over the shattered bodies and among the trenches of the Allies and our enemies alike.

There can be no better symbol of peace than that."

We wear a red poppy as a sign we wish for reconciliation and peace.

It appears there was an association between the poppy and the 1st World War from as early as 1915.

In the region around Ypres in Belgian Flanders the months of April and May 1915 were unusually warm. Farmers were ploughing their fields close up to the front lines and new life was starting to grow. One of the plants that began to grow in clusters on and around the battle zones was the red field or corn poppy (papaver rhoeas).

This is what happened in parts of the front lines in Belgium and France. Once the ground was disturbed by the fighting, the poppy seeds lying in the ground began to germinate and grow during the warm weather in the spring and summer months of 1915, 1916, 1917 and 1918.

In Flanders Fields - John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Another change to the poppy is that for many years the black centre had the words
'haig fund' on it. That too had been removed.

DazedConfused,

The poppy appeal was first set up by Earl Haig in 1921 to raise funds for the veterans of WW1.

Although no longer used on the poppies of today the object of the Royal British Legion is still the same to give help to all the military personnel that have been injured and support to the families of those that have been killed.

Long may the RBL continue .......

I have also bought 3 White Poppies from a church and in the centre it says


"""" PEACE """""


Also bought 3 red Poppies.

No such thing as the right way to wear a poppy - the main thing is that if you want to you do

Thanks, Amokavid,

I worried about my poppies not having a leaf.
I get them sent down from Scotland and it is amazing how many people pass comment. A good talking point!!

GR Logo ( top left of his page) is wearing it's poppy at 2pm <3 <3

:-D Well spotted GlasgowLass !

obviously they didn't read this thread before installing their poppy!!!!!

Bob ;-)