In Flanders Fields Museum and the School of History/Gateways to the First World War, University of Kent present a fifth series of eight seminars on Thursday evening, free and open to all.

Ieper venue and start times: Research Centre, Reading Room,  In Flanders Fields Museum, Sint-Maartensplein 3, 8900 Ieper, 7.15 pm.
 
24 January 2019
Professor Lucy Noakes, University of Essex, 'Poppy Petals: The Meaning of the Great War in 21st Century Britain.'

In 2014 Britain embarked on four years of commemorative activity to mark the centenary of the Great War.  This talk considers what the past four years tell us about the meanings of this conflict in 21st century Britain, where, far from being universally established and agreed upon, symbols of remembrance such as the British Legion poppy are contested and fought over, demonstrating the political nature of remembrance.  Drawing on a range of material, including political debates, commemorative activities and a Directive on individual understandings of the Great War, commissioned by the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council, the talk will discuss both the meanings of the Great War in 21st century Britain, and what these might tell us about the country today.