for the first time, there will be a patriotic vigil

This year, for the first time, there will be a patriotic vigil during the November 11 commemorations, franceinfo learned this Thursday from the Elysée. This unique vigil will be set up because it is the centenary of the first lighting of the Flame of Remembrance at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, under the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

This vigil “patriotic and popular” will take place in the evening at 6:30 p.m., the time when the flame was lit for the first time in 1923. The vigil “with sound and lights on the Arc de Triomphe”, will last approximately 45 minutes and is open to all. The Élysée specifies that the standard bearers will be present.

A tribute to the three French soldiers who died in Iraq

In addition to this vigil, President Emmanuel Macron will preside over the official ceremony at 11 a.m. on Place Charles de Gaulle and under the Arc de Triomphe. The opportunity to lay a wreath on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, to rekindle the Flame and to greet veterans and families of soldiers who died for France. The Head of State will also speak for a few minutes.

Emmanuel Macron will also take the opportunity to pay tribute, in the presence of their families, to the three French soldiers who died for France in Iraq in August. The November 11 ceremonies celebrate the Armistice of the First World War. This year is the 105th anniversary of the Armistice signed in 1918.