Armistice Day

[InfraDig]

The "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" , this year will be on 11/11/11

[InfraDig]

[lincsyokel2]

The "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" , this year will be on 11/11/11

You can take it further, in fact there will be a point where its 11.11 seconds and 11 minutes past 11 oclock on the 11/11/11.

Mathematically they are called repunit dates. This century has been very good for it. starting with 01:01 on 1/1/1, then

2:02:02 on 2/2/2
3:03:03 on 3/3/3
etc to

12:12:12 on 12/12/12

Then the sequence doesnt occur again until 1:01:01 on 1/1/3001

BUT, Odd dates crop us before then:

there will be

02:02:02 on 2/2/22
2:02:22 on 2/2/22
3:03:33 on 3/3/33
4:04:44 on 4/4/44
which then comes a cropper after
5:05:55 on 5/5/55

etc

you can split hairs and insist the year is in full, in which case the last time such a date occurred was 

1:01:01 on 1/1/1111 AD

and wont occur again until

2:02:02 on 2/2/2222

Another one is palindromic dates:

1:02:03 3/02/01
2:03:04 4/03/02

to

13:12:11 on 11/12/13

[saddad]

Would now be a poor time to point out that the Armistice was at Midday (12:00) but on European Time so we remember it at 11:00am...  :-X

[ACE]

Would now be a poor time to point out that the Armistice was at Midday (12:00) but on European Time so we remember it at 11:00am...  :-X

Shhhh. Don't shout it from to rooftops, otherwise there will be another gravy train committee debating it for years, then there will be another EU directive telling us to do it at midday or we will be fined.

[pumkinlover]

Would now be a poor time to point out that the Armistice was at Midday (12:00) but on European Time so we remember it at 11:00am...  :-X

Errr... yes ;) ;) ;)

[grawrc]

The armistice was signed at 5.15 on 11th November with the ceasefire following at 11a.m. This was local time (i.e. not GMT). I suspect the symbolic effect of 11th hour etc was not lost on the signatories either.

[Obelixx]

The Armistice is marked in the UK with a 2 minute silence, for some few observers, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.  It is gradually gaining a wider recognition and observance on the day itself but the UK still chooses to relegate its parade to the nearest Sunday.

In Europe - except in Germany - the whole day is observed as a national holiday of remembrance.  There are wreath laying ceremonies at every war memorial and military cemetry here in Belgium.  My own village memorial lists the names of those lost as soldiers and civilians plus those shot or deported to Germany as slaves for resisting and never returned.

I hardly think the EU is going to fuss whether the UK stands still at 11am or 12 noon.  They're more likely baffled as to why you do so little but then, having twice survived invasion and occupation by the Germans perhaps they have more for which to be grateful.

I had the pleasure of meeting a very old survivor in 2005 at special 60 year celebrations.  He had been a young teenage boy scout when war broke out and his troop took it upon themselves to spy on local German troop movements and sabotage railway lines as best they could.  His friends were all killed but he was captured and sent to work in factories for the rest of the war.  As a civilian, not a soldier, he was deemed to have no rights under the Geneva convention and suffered dreadful abuse but was strong and survived and has gone on to forgive and befriend the Germans whilst honouring the fallen.   Some Brits could do with his enlightened attitude.