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| Service marks end of Battle of the Somme centenary | |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| A service of remembrance is being held in a village in northern France to mark the 100th anniversary of the final day of the Battle of the Somme. | |
| Some 2,000 guests are gathering in Thiepval, where a daily service has been held since July to mark the anniversary of every day of the battle. | |
| An international ceremony marked the first day of the battle on 1 July. | An international ceremony marked the first day of the battle on 1 July. |
| More than a million men were killed or wounded on both sides over the course of the 141-day World War One offensive. | More than a million men were killed or wounded on both sides over the course of the 141-day World War One offensive. |
| Over the past three months, families, communities, and dignitaries have made their way to Thiepval to stage their own acts of remembrance. | Over the past three months, families, communities, and dignitaries have made their way to Thiepval to stage their own acts of remembrance. |
| The Thiepval Memorial to the Missing is the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission monument in the world, inscribed with the names of more than 72,000 soldiers whose bodies were never recovered or identified. | The Thiepval Memorial to the Missing is the largest Commonwealth War Graves Commission monument in the world, inscribed with the names of more than 72,000 soldiers whose bodies were never recovered or identified. |
| A daily service has been hosted there by the Royal British Legion to commemorate each day of the four-and-a-half month offensive, fought between 1 July and 18 November 1916. | A daily service has been hosted there by the Royal British Legion to commemorate each day of the four-and-a-half month offensive, fought between 1 July and 18 November 1916. |
| The final centenary service will be led by Bishop James Newcome, the Royal British Legion's national chaplain, and guests will be welcomed by Britain's ambassador to France, Lord Llewellyn of Steep. | The final centenary service will be led by Bishop James Newcome, the Royal British Legion's national chaplain, and guests will be welcomed by Britain's ambassador to France, Lord Llewellyn of Steep. |
| Speaking before the service, the Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch, head of remembrance at the Royal British Legion, said those who fought had left an "enduring legacy" across the UK and Commonwealth. | |
| 'Collective sacrifice' | 'Collective sacrifice' |
| He said the Royal British Legion had "led the nation in remembering the men whose sacrifice has come to symbolise the tragic scale and futility of modern industrialised warfare". | He said the Royal British Legion had "led the nation in remembering the men whose sacrifice has come to symbolise the tragic scale and futility of modern industrialised warfare". |
| "The last day of the Somme is a moment to reflect on the collective sacrifice of all those who fought and fell in such tragic numbers between 1 July and 18 November 1916," he added. | "The last day of the Somme is a moment to reflect on the collective sacrifice of all those who fought and fell in such tragic numbers between 1 July and 18 November 1916," he added. |
| In July, thousands of people - including the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry - attended a ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the battle. | In July, thousands of people - including the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince Harry - attended a ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the battle. |
| Earlier this month, it was announced that hundreds of first-hand accounts of the Somme, mostly written experiences of the soldiers who went over the top on the first day of the offensive, would be made public for the first time. | Earlier this month, it was announced that hundreds of first-hand accounts of the Somme, mostly written experiences of the soldiers who went over the top on the first day of the offensive, would be made public for the first time. |
| The Battle of the Somme | The Battle of the Somme |
| Find out more: | Find out more: |