Remembrance 90

As 2008 is the 90th anniversary of Armistice, the day the Great War of 1914-18 ended, this special occasion has been marked with plenty of coverage.

And Somerset's Harry Patch, the last known survivor of the Battle of Passchendale in Ypres, has played a starring role, appearing with the two other survivors of the conflict which killed five million men and women who served in Britain's forces during the conflict, Henry Allingham, 112, and 108-year-old Bill Stone.

The trio, watched by dignitaries including the Duchess of Gloucester, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and members of the Cabinet, were led down Whitehall by a single piper shortly before 1100. They then watched as wreaths were laid.

And it was coverage like this which caught the attention of several children from Westbury Park School in Bristol and made the aware of what soldiers like Harry have done.

Without teacher supervision, 15 children aged between eight and seven and led by Sebastian Vickerman have all written letters of praise to Harry.

Sebastian wrote:

Dear Mr Patch

Thank you for what you did for Britain so we can be a free country. It is amazing that you are 110, you are very lucky that you are still alive

And they're not the only school children who are inspired by the 110-year-old.

Harry is normally recognised as being the last surviving Tommy from the Great War.

But when nine-year-old Daisy from Newdigate Primary School in Coventry asked her teacher if there were any Victorians still alive, the teacher said yes: Harry Patch.

The children with their poems

 The children then became fascinated with Harry, and began reading and listening to interviews with him wherever they could find any.

They were especially enamoured with an interview where he said "I gave him his life" as they thought it was great that he did not kill anyone.

And now they have written poems about him and sent him a thank you card for being so inspirational.