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 | | Tuesday, 6 November, 2001, 06:23 GMT Poppies light up monument  The poem "In Flanders' Fields" will be read out Images of poppies will be projected on to a London monument in memory of British soldiers who have died in war. The six-metre high flowers set against a blue and green background will move across Wellington Arch on Hyde Park Corner topped by the message "We Will Remember Them". A Chelsea Pensioner will switch on the illumination on Tuesday and it will be displayed every evening evening until 10 November. It marks 80 years of the Royal British Legion and the poppy appeal, which supports thousands of ex-service people. Forward looking David Williams, appeal development officer for London, said: "In 2000, Londoners donated more than �1.9m. "The poppy appeal funded legion help for more than 6,000 ex-service people in the capital alone last year.
Chelsea pensioner John Carbis, 72, who served with the Royal Engineers from 1947 for 22 years, will switch on the illumination. There will then be a reading of John McCrae's 1915 poem "In Flanders Fields". The poppy is a symbol of those who have fallen in battle since the First World War. The flowers grow on the fields in Belgium and France where most of the battles of the war were fought. Extra donations Mr Williams said this year's poppy appeal had set a target of more than �20m. "The calls on legion time and support become greater every year and we are urging everyone to make an extra donation towards the target." The Royal British Legion works to support 15 million ex-service men and women and their families. Last year it spent �43 million on welfare work - less than half of this was paid for through the �20.1 million raised by the 2000 poppy appeal. The 176-year-old Wellington Arch landmark is owned by English Heritage and was recently given a �2m facelift. | |   See also: Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top England stories now:  Links to more England stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||
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