The Poppy Appeal

[Anth]

This year's Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal started recently and I thought it would be worth posting about the history of the Appeal for those who have seen people wearing poppies at this time of year but not known about them.

History

The first official Legion Poppy Day was held in Britain on 11 November 1921, inspired by the poem In Flanders' Fields written by John McCrae. Since then the Poppy Appeal has been a key annual event in the nation's calendar.

In Flanders' Fields:

Some of the bloodiest fighting of World War I took place in the Flanders and Picardy regions of Northern France. The Poppy was the only thing which grew in the aftermath of the complete devastation. McCrae, a doctor serving there with the Canadian Armed Forces, deeply inspired and moved by what he saw, wrote these verses:

In Flanders' Fields
John McCrae, 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.


On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918, the First World War ended. Civilians wanted to remember the people who had given their lives for peace and freedom. An American War Secretary, Moina Michael, inspired by John McCrae's poem, began selling Poppies to friends to raise money for the ex-Service community. And so the tradition began.

The Story of the Poppy Factory

The Poppy Factory at Richmond, Surrey, is where a team of 60 people, most of them disabled, work all year to make the Poppies and wreaths for the Poppy Appeal. Over the year they make over 34 million Poppies, 5 million remembrance petals, 750,000 Remembrance Crosses and nearly 100,000 wreaths, including those laid by Her Majesty the Queen and other members of the Royal Family.


The origins of the factory go back to 1922 when Major George Howson MC, an engineer who served on the Western Front in the Great War, founded the Disabled Society. With a small initial grant he set up a small factory on the Old Kent Road with five ex-Service men, it was here that the first British Poppies were made. Within a few months the number of employees had risen to 50 providing work and income for many disabled veterans and their families. The demand grew and as the premises became too small the factory moved to its present location in Richmond in 1933.

Why Donate?

The Legion spends over £43.5 million every year on welfare assistance for ex-Service and Service men and women and their dependants. Over £23 million is raised through the Poppy Appeal, with other income coming from events, gifts in Wills, donations, sponsorship, sales, fees and investments.
Each year the nation expresses its unequivocal support for the Legion's work through its generous support of the Poppy Appeal. It is one of the best known and supported campaigns in the calendar. The Poppy Factory in Richmond, Surrey, produces over 34 million Poppies every year, along with the wreaths laid at Remembrance services around the country and the Poppy petals that fall at the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall. The Poppy has become a symbol of remembrance for the nation.
Where the money goes

• £5 would ensure that a housebound or hospitalised person receives a one hour friendship visit.
• £20 would contribute towards an emergency grant to provide essentials like food, fuel, clothing or bedding to an ex-Service person struggling to survive.
• £30 could help towards providing skilled advice and an hour's representative for a person at a Disability Allowance or War/Disablement Pension tribunal.
• £75 could help towards providing a fresh start for an ex-Service man or woman, with a place on a vocational assessment course which can help them adjust to life outside the Services and introduce them to new civilian skills.
• £230 could buy an emergency lifeline alarm for an elderly person.
• £800 could provide a severely disabled person and their carer with a much needed welfare break.

No gift is too small. Whatever you give will help us carry on with our work.

All from www.poppy.org

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I personally will only give to a few charities - the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), BBC's Children in Need and the Royal British Legion. Of these, I have bought a poppy in the appeal every year that I can remember. I even remember having people come round my classes in primary school (5-11yo) and buying poppies every year without fail (normally more than one a week from loosing them).

Please Brits, buy a Poppy

[USA11B]

You reminded me of things forgotten, and added new things. Thanks Anth.

[filthybeast]

Long time ago when I was in England I went to a concert " Morning Hero's " By Bliss. The RPO was playing all the proceeds went to the Poppy appeal.
The Story behind Morning Hero's is a sad but wonderful story.

[Snowden]

We used to have the poppies here - maybe they are still sold in some places, but it's been years since I've seen them. I love Flanders' Fields - a sad poem, but it evokes memories we have only from other people. Still haunting, still meaningful - and all but forgotten.

[Woodmonkey]

Originally Posted by Snowden

We used to have the poppies here - maybe they are still sold in some places, but it's been years since I've seen them. I love Flanders' Fields - a sad poem, but it evokes memories we have only from other people. Still haunting, still meaningful - and all but forgotten.

They used to be very prominent around here too.

Thank you, Anth!

[Betty Boop]

As Veteran's Day approaches (traditional day was Armistace day - November 11th - here in the States - now just another Monday holiday easy to forget the meaning of), Flanders Field is still the perfect poem to reflect upon.

Here's a California poppy for you, Anth
The golden poppy is our state flower. A rather simple wildflower that in it's simplicity is pure elegance and beauty!

Thank you for reminding us our need and responsibility to both not forget the sacrifices made but to as well for our Vets who were willing to make those sacrifices - of all nations. The Poppy Appeal sounds like a wonderful society you Brits have.