Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

[MargaretR]

Window of origin:




And then some from down among the workers:

Under the eye of the world's tourists:




Assembled poppies waiting to be planted:




my little patch:




Tower Bridge background:




Window of origin from below:




Tall poppies:




And a couple of personal ones: one planted for great-uncle Jimmy, killed in action in 1915:




And one planted for Grandad, who I'm pleased to say survived the War and lived into his 80s, dying in 1972. Cpl. D Scott, 1306, 8th Btn Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, 51st Highland Division. He wasn't a fatality (or I wouldn't be here!), but nonetheless I wanted to pay tribute to his service from my generation of the family.




A great experience to participate in, in memory of all those who served, and who lost their lives.

"At the going down of the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them"

[StephenL]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Looking good - an unusual viewpoint. Did you plant mine? Really must get along to see them soon.

[jdal]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

I think this thing is a cracking idea, very emotive. The "Window of origin from below" shot is particularly good.

[Chevvyf1]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Margaret thanks for sharing these fab images I must try and get up to see them

I particularly lurve your first image the composition of the Shard amongst the Tower is brilliant

[Bikie John]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Thanks for the unusual view of this, Margaret. I really must get to The Smoke to see it.

That is a lovely tribute to your granddad as well.

John

[Phill D]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Excellent images Margaret, it's a stunning memorial. I too am planning to go and view them, just need to fix a visit date.

[Zuiko]

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Awe inspiring! I think your little patch looks as good as any of the viewpoints. It's sobering to think that each of these poppies represents a life lost, and that's just on "our" side. It's just as well we had the Empire to call upon, because we were perilously close to running out of men of the required fitness and age group. The World is always a bit illogical but 1914-18 represents a time when it went truly mad and exposed the very worst of humanity. Both my grandfathers fought in that war and one of them had breathing problems all his life after being gassed. Neither would talk about the war and I've no idea what they went through. One of them didn't approve of toy guns and the other gave his medals to my sister and me to play with. They spent many years mixed in a box of Leggo - I guess they didn't mean that much to him and we were too young to appreciate the significance of what they represented.

However, it is thanks to them and the next generation that fought the Second World War that my generation has never had to fight a war in Europe, having had an unprecidented almost 70 years of peace and still counting. For all the problems of the European Union, it is infinitely preferable to have a united, rather than divided, Europe.

[PeterBirder]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

A beautiful, unique and inspirational set Margaret.

You have posted a selection of views most people will never get to see which give a different perspective of the Tower and its surroundings. The first, with The Shard in the background highlights the incredible range of architecture over many centuries which makes London unique.

I can imagine it was a fantastic experience to take part in this wonderful project and make your own personal contribution to our expression of gratitude to those who gave their lives for future generations.

Many thanks for sharing.

[DerekW]

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The greatest tragedy was the Spanish flu that targeted and killed the young men that returned from the war.

[Grumpy Hec]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Some wonderful shots of a magnificent project.

I think the idea is inspired and a remarkably evocative and effective memorial.

Hec

[MargaretR]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Thanks all, for your comments.

I'm not usually one for "public Art", but this project is both inspired and inspiring. And judging by the crowds I had to fight through to get back to the Tube station, an awful lot of people agree.

[Zuiko]

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The greatest tragedy was the Spanish flu that targeted and killed the young men that returned from the war.

It is certainly true that Spanish Flu claimed more lives than WW1 and that young, healthy adults were disproportionally affected compared to other strains of flu. It must rank as one of the greatest natural disasters of all time, but what sets it apart from the Great War is that it was largely unavoidable, whereas the war was a tragic manifestation of Man's own stupidity.

[brianvickers]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

Thanks for posting Margaret....we are planning to visit in a few weeks time.

[Internaut]

Re: Tower of London poppy planting - image-heavy

A good set with some nice viewpoints. Given the direction of the sun, at pretty much any time of the day, the image with the shard is a difficult capture.