? THE Mayor of Tavistock, Mandy Ewings, and the Vicar of Tavistock, the Very Rev Dr Christopher Hardwick, joined members of the Royal British Legion in the town for a service of remembrance to mark the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme on?July 1.

The service was held to commemorate the centenary of the first day of the battle which started on July 1, 1916 and had such devastating losses on the armed forces.

Malcolm Christie, chairman of the Tavistock RBL branch, said: ‘The act of remembrance reminds us of the enormous debt that we owe to those who fought and were injured in body or mind, and the enormous number of brave souls who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country in that battle and indeed in all conflicts before and since.’

The Battle of the Somme was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British and French empires against the German Empire.

It took place between July 1 and November 18, 1916, on both sides of upper reaches of the River Somme in France. It was the largest battle of the First World War on the Western Front; more than one million men were wounded or killed, making it one of the bloodiest battles in human history.

The first day on the Somme saw a serious defeat for the German Second Army, which was forced out of its first position by the French Sixth Army.

The first day on the Somme was also the worst day in the history of the British army, which suffered 57,470 casualties, mainly on the front between the Albert–Bapaume road and Gommecourt, where the attack was defeated and few British troops reached the German front line. The British troops on the Somme comprised a mixture of the remains of the pre-war regular army, the Territorial Force and the Kitchener Army, which was composed of Pals battalions, recruited from the same places and occupations.

? A NUMBER of East Cornwall residents stood at the Albaston War Memorial on the morning of July 1 for a ‘Whistle for the Somme’ remembrance ceremony.

Clive Frederick Preece read a tribute, Calstock Parish councillor Dougal McLachlan gave three short blasts on a whistle, Callington Standard Bearer Jason Bond performed the flag duties and all in attendance stood for silence.

? RESIDENTS from Princetown gathered together last Thursday evening (June 30) at the village’s war memorial for a candle lit vigil to commemorate the centenary of the Battle of the Somme.

Three Princetown men were killed on the day and one died in September, 1916, from injuries sustained.