France Commemorates 107th WWI Armistice Day with Cornflower Centenary

Armistice Day Commemoration

• 🇫🇷 France is marking Armistice Day, the end of World War I, which is also a public holiday.
• 💡 This year's ceremony specifically commemorates the centenary of the French Cornflower.
• 🌍 An urn filled with soil from 16 World War I burial and memorial sites, topped with a cornflower, will be symbolically placed on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Evolution of Armistice Day Meaning

• 🗓️ Since 1975, Armistice Day in France has been broadened to honor all soldiers who died defending France.
• ✈️ Since 2012, the commemoration includes those who lost their lives in overseas operations.
• 💔 This year also features a focus on the "Malgré-nous" (in spite of ourselves), soldiers from Alsace and Moselle forcibly conscripted into the German army during WWII, marking a day of reconciliation.

Ceremonial Events

• 🏛️ At L'Historial de la Grande Guerre (formerly a military hospital), a plaque will be unveiled and a moment of silence observed for the "Malgré-nous."
• 🌳 The President will visit the statue of Georges Clemenceau, who signed the armistice, at the foot of the Champs-Élysées.
• 🎖️ The ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe includes a ceremonial inspection of troops, laying flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and symbolically reigniting the perpetual flame.
• 🕊️ Proceedings conclude with a moment of silence, the Marseillaise, and a procession by the cavalry of the Republican Guard.