Remembrance Day

On Monday 11th November, KEHS marked Remembrance Day with assemblies for the Lower and Upper School. We were ably assisted by Zeena, Morgan, Rachel, Haniya and Sparsha, who shared their most memorable moments from the First World War Battlefields trip. The assembly provided a balance of memorial and respectful remembrance, but also hope for the future, that however volatile British politics may seem today, we can be grateful for the relative security and stability we now enjoy. Our Poet Laureate, Natalie shared her poem inspired by the Second World War, entitled We were all kids, which was poignant and thought provoking. The two minute silence was respectfully observed by all girls, many wearing poppies. The assembly finished with the Kohima Epitaph, this is the epitaph carved on the Memorial of the 2nd British Division in the cemetery of Kohima (North-East India). It reads: ‘When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say, For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today.’ The verse is attributed to John Maxwell Edmonds (1875-1958) and is thought to have been inspired by the epitaph written by Simonides to honour the Greeks who fell at the Battle of Thermopylae in 480BC. Thank you to all the girls who spoke so maturely and articulately, and to Mrs Britton for her participation. Many thanks to Samantha, Jenni, Naina and Beatrice for performing Shostakovich’s Elegy. Thank you also to Ella for playing The Last Post. The music added poignancy to this important event.