Cambridgeshire’s servicemen who died on the battlefields of Belgium and France during the First World War have been remembered at a ceremony in Ypres, Belgium, attended by Euro MP Alex Mayer.
Alex paid her respects by laying a poppy wreath at the Menin Gate Memorial.
She said: “It is an honour to be able to come to Ypres and pay my respects as a member of the European Parliament.
“Europe was scarred by bloody conflicts for too long.
“Part of remembering, is to make sure nations don’t fall out again.
“Today I am thinking of all those who died, as we resolve to always work for peace.”
More than 23,000 soldiers from East of England regiments died in the First World War.
Traditionally, the Menin Gate was the location from where troops used to depart for the front.
Many never returned. For this reason it was chosen as the site of the most impressive memorial to the Great War, Alex said.
The memorial is a grandiose reminder of the horrors of the First World War, an era when disputes between European nations were settled on the battlefields rather than the negotiating table, she added.
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