Hartlepool pays tribute to the fallen with a low-key Remembrance Sunday service

Commemorative acts and tributes to mark the occasion were observed in a scaled-back way in order to comply with government Covid guidelines.

Armed Forces Associations and other veterans had already joined Hartlepool Borough Council representatives on Friday for a short service at the war memorial in Victoria Road.

Wreath-laying events were also held across the weekend and shared online by the council, as respects were paid at Headland War Memorial on Saturday.

Both monuments were lit by the local authority to mark the date.

Three Union Flags were raised on Wednesday and will remain on display until Friday.

A number of the town’s veteran and other military organisations held ceremonial events of their own as part of this year’s Remembrance tributes in the town.

Ex-First Batallion of the Light Infantry and chairman of Hartlepool’s Durham Light Infantry group, Paul Allen, helped organise a ceremony at Hartlepool war memorial.

He said: "I would like to say a big thank you and well done to all veterans and everyone in Hartlepool who attended our ceremony today.

“A special thanks to other veterans who helped me put it together: Norman Wright; the Green Howards Yorkshire Regiment; and my secretary, Terry Phillips.

"All the hard work we’ve put into organising it shows that it would take more than the Covid-19 virus to stop our veterans and townspeople paying their respects to their fallen comrades on Remembrance Sunday.

"A big thank you also to the buglers in attendance and Colin Longstaff (a member of the local Light Infantry association who attended our ceremony).”

Nationally, the Queen led official proceedings to mark the date, having been joined by family members and the Prime Minister in commemorating the UK’s war dead at the scaled-back service at the Cenotaph in London.

As was the case locally, the public were unable to attend the Cenotaph ceremony this year, with the event taking place during a second national lockdown in England.

Britons were instead encouraged to take part in the two-minute silence at 11am at home.

In other years, Whitehall would usually have been packed with thousands of veterans and military. But on Sunday, less than 30 veterans were in attendance.

Support your Mail and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news, the latest on Pools and new puzzles every day. With a digital subscription, you can see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.