“The Silence Of Memory”. By: Tina Pepler. Lest We Forget.

On 11 November 1920, The Unknown Warrior 

was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Illustration: BBC

“THE SILENCE OF MEMORY”.

By: Tina Pepler.

This Radio broadcast is available on BBC Sounds 

HERE

Sentries of the 48th Highlanders of Canada 

with Arms Reversed during the unveiling and dedication of The Regiment’s Memorial at Queen’s Park, Toronto, 

11 November 1923, in Remembrance of the sixty-one Officers and 1,406 Non-Commissioned Officers and Men, 

who died during World War I.

The tradition of Reversing and Resting on Arms — that is, leaning on a weapon held upside down — has been a mark of respect or mourning for Centuries, said to have originated with the ancient Greeks.

Descriptions of 16th-Century Military funerals provide 

the earliest documented instances of carrying 

Arms Reversed in more recent times.

When the first notes of The Rouse (Reveille) are sounded, Reversed Arms are brought up in salute to the 

Present Arms position.

Illustration: 48TH HIGHLANDERS OF CANADA

On 11 November 1920, The Unknown Warrior was buried in Westminster Abbey. 

It was a surrogate body for all those whose loved ones were missing, presumed dead. 

At the funeral, and ever since, the focus has been on the widows and bereaved mothers. 

Starring Michael Williams, Tina Pepler’s drama-documentary follows three men — a demobbed soldier, a grieving father, and a young boy — on the day of the funeral, as they try to come to terms with their loss.

Harold: Michael Williams.

Tom: Daniel Jackson.

Jack: Michael Wilson.

Unknown Soldier: David Brooks.

Dean: Brian Gear.

Director: Kate McAll.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 1998.

Sentries with Arms Reversed at the 100th Anniversary Commemorative Service (2015) for the Second Battle of Ypres (22 April 1915 — 25 May 1915).

Illustration: 48TH HIGHLANDERS OF CANADA

“THE SILENCE OF MEMORY”.

By: Tina Pepler.

This Radio broadcast is available on BBC Sounds

HERE