For the last couple of weeks I and colleagues from the British Embassy have been wearing artificial poppies in our lapels or pinned to our clothes. And lots of Hungarian friends and acquaintances have been asking me why we do this. So I have been pleased to have the chance to explain to them that this is the symbol that shows we are remembering Britons and their Allies who died in the First World War and in subsequent wars. Hungary and Britain has not always been on the same side. But we are now EU partners and NATO allies and we are fighting alongside each other in Afghanistan – so this is not ancient history but something very current and relevant.
Every year on the Sunday nearest to the 11th November (the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice in 1918) we hold a service at the Commonwealth War Grace Commission cemetery at Solymar, a village on the outskirts of Budapest, to remember those who have given their lives for us and to preserve our way of life. As well as British forces, there are also Australian, Canadian, French, New Zealand, Polish and South African servicemen buried at Solymar – which is kept in beautiful condition by Gabor Bota, whom we employ on behalf of the CWGC. I was first here, in thick snow I seem to recall, in November 1989.
This year was my sixth attendance at the Remembrance Sunday service at Solymar. For many years it has been led by Canon Denis Moss, the Anglican Priest in Budapest, who is retiring soon: we are so very grateful to him for this role, which he has so faithfully performed for so long. Clerics from the Scottish Mission, Polish Catholic and Jewish Churches have also participated over many years.
We were very lucky with the weather today – a beautiful sunny Sunday – and with the good turnout of people (maybe up to 100). The Hungarian Armed Forces kindly provided a bugler, as they do every year. And after the ceremony we returned to the British Residence for something warming.