King Charles leads Remembrance Sunday service, lays wreath at war memorial

Nov. 13 (UPI) -- Britain's King Charles led a service for Remembrance Sunday, laying a poppy wreath at the Cenotaph war memorial in London in his first such ceremony as king.

The Royal Family said in a statement that the tradition of laying the poppy wreath was started by Charles' great-grandfather King George V in 1920 and was continued every year since by his son, King George VI, and granddaughter Queen Elizabeth II.

The design of the wreath pays tribute to wreaths laid by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Family said. The Cenotaph is an empty tomb to remember Britain's staggering losses in World War I.

"The wreath's poppies are mounted on an arrangement of black leaves, as is traditional for the Sovereign, and its ribbon bears The King's racing colors; scarlet, purple and gold," the statement reads.

"The Royal racing colors were also incorporated into the wreaths of King George V, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II."

Charles' brother Prince Edward and his sister Anne, Princess Royal, also laid flowers at the Cenotaph. His son William, who was named the Prince of Wales upon his father's ascension to the crown, laid a wreath previously laid by King Charles as the Prince of Wales.

The Royal Family noted that, for the first time, a wreath was laid on behalf of Camilla, the Queen Consort.

Others who attended the service included British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his predecessor, Liz Truss, Britain's LBC Radio reported.

The annual service takes place on the second Sunday of November and is followed by a national two-minute silence to remember those who have died in conflict.